Freedom's Rise
by Michelle Amethyst
Summary: Nominated for the "Everything's Bigger in Texas Awards". Bella's very special and draws the attention of Maria in 1927. She meets Jasper and Peter and swears revenge on Maria for taking everything from her.But revenge is a delicate thing to achieve.AU JXB
1. Chapter 1

**A/N- I have fallen in love with Jasper/Bella fics... I am officially converted to this pairing. This story has been on my mind for quite some time and I hope that you all like it. **

**There will be swearing, lots of violence and lemons in the future. For now I will rate it T... when the sex comes, depending on how graphic I make it I will change the rating accordingly. **

**Please give me some feedback... good, bad, ugly.... whatever. Thanks!**

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**October 27, 1927**

"Where is this shipment headed, Miss Jameson?" My eyes flew to the tall, bulky man in front of me. His dark hair was slicked back with copious amounts of grease adding to his overall appearance of a slippery criminal. Johnny McCormick really did look the part of a gangster bootlegger. His brown eyes turned curious, waiting for my response.

"Tallahassee and San Antonio. The next shipment is headed for Houma, Louisiana and Montgomery, Alabama. That will help keep Mr. Daniels territory afloat for a bit." I replied.

My territory actually. Mr. Daniels didn't exist, but he served the purpose of my elusive lover, the man behind the running of liquor to the southern states. Using my fictitious beau, I am able to run my operation with few questions from the thugs and gangsters that are using Prohibition to fill their piggy banks.

Johnny nodded his head in understanding as he walked towards the Mexican dock workers that were unloading the goods. I watched as crate after crate of booze was brought towards the waiting trucks, each crate wedged between bales of hay to throw off the cops that were trying in vain to uphold the 18th Amendment. Just the thought of that damn Amendment made me angry.

I glanced down at my calf-length black beaded dress. I looked like the quintessential flapper, with low heels, a long layered pearl necklace and bracelets dangling from my wrists. My large brown eyes were lined with kohl and my lips were painted red making my pale skin stand out. This was also part of my facade. I was not a party girl only intent on dancing and drinking in a shady speakeasy. I hated dressing like my air-headed peers, but like Mr. Daniels, the illusion I presented to my cohorts helped me do what I needed to do.

My men had just finished packing the last of the hooch into the dusty trucks, and began to gather near Johnny for orders. I walked briskly to the group and tried to look demure, while I was really analyzing the crew. There were eight men besides Johnny. Two men to a truck, and two trucks to each destination. Johnny told the men where the stops were going to be while I eyed each man in turn.

Each had a hungry, hard look about them. I could see the outline of a handgun tucked into the waistband of their trousers on each of them. A few even sported Tommy guns, slung over their shoulders. They eyed me back, leering slightly. They never dared approach me, for fear that the boss man, Mr. Daniels would hear that I had been messed with and retaliate. I helped rumors circulate of the last man that dared touch me inappropriately; he was never heard from again. In truth, I had handled that man on my own, using the small handgun that I kept under my dress (with the help of a couple garters), I had shot him once on each of his thighs. He survived but I never saw him again.

"Oh Boys? Mr. Daniel's wanted me to remind you all to be careful. Also, he wanted me to warn you that any skimming off the top of the take would be severely punished. Trust me when I say, he will know if you try any of that shady business." I said to my men, watching their expressions closely. I could see a few of them shift almost imperceptibly. I had a knack for knowing what was going on beneath the surface of the people around me. I pretended I hadn't seen a thing and flashed them all a quick, flirty smile.

I raised my cigarette to my lips and took a drag, exhaling with my lips in a pucker, drawing their eyes to my mouth. I winked and flounced away from the group. I made a mental note of the men who I now knew were stealing money from me, intent on devising a plan of attack to trap them and set them on the straight and narrow again. Leroy, Stan and Donny were going to have to watch themselves.

Johnny gave the last few orders and began to follow me to our car. He was my right hand man, though he didn't know I was the head of this operation. He trusted my orders and words because he thought they were supplied to me by Mr. Daniels. He was smart and he protected me, but he never delved too deep into my affairs. His paycheck depended on his unquestioning loyalty. I really did like him as a friend and I hated to lie to him, but he was first and foremost a criminal and I knew that if he smelled weakness, there would be an attempt at a takeover. I could not allow that. My reasons for running liquor were not like the others. Greed does not drive me to do what I'm doing.

"Ready to head back to Reynosa for the night, Freya?" Johnny asked me as he got in the car and started the engine. I nodded. Reynosa, Mexico was essentially my base of operations; we rented an old villa that housed my men when they weren't out doing deliveries. It's a large one story house that sat on an acre of land, away from the rest of the small town. There were six rooms, varying in size, four for my men and two for me. One of my rooms was used as my office and as a meeting room to discuss tactics or problems that were encountered on the runs. It's also where the money was counted and divvied up to my men. My take was always quickly taken to the bank to be wired to my accounts and from there it would go to its proper locations.

The ride back was quiet as usual, Johnny wasn't much of a talker and neither was I. The road stretched out in front of us, dark and desolate. My thoughts quickly turned to what had led to me this point in my life. It was all so complicated, yet so resoundingly simple.

I was born Isabella Marie Swan on September 13, 1908. My family consisted of my father Charles Swan and my mother Renee Swan. We had loved each other fiercely and were tight-knit in the beginning. My father was the police chief of Houston, Texas. He was fair, steady and did his job well. So well in fact that he was pursued to run for governor of Texas shortly after I had turned 7. He was hesitant to run at first, but eventually he was swayed by the overwhelming support he received from our city. He ran and won. At first he was the same as he had always been, level-headed and firm. It began slowly, the transition from my dad to the man I came to refer to as Governor. He began to stay at the Capital more often, getting more and more involved with the dirty side of politics. He was never outright crooked, but he became more pliable to persuasion on bills and legislation that he would normally disagree with.

My mother remained consistent in my life. She never changed her kind, generous, and eccentric ways. In fact, as our wealth increased dramatically, so did her philanthropy. She worked with the poor and volunteered at hospitals, always trying to brighten the lives of others. She loved my father and never once did that love seem to lessen as he changed. She accepted him, growing faults and all. All too soon for me she was taken from this world. The doctors couldn't identify what was causing her sudden illness, and it wore her down in a span of six months. I was 12 and my only source of love and comfort was ripped away.

The Governor hardly ever returned home after she passed away, staying in D.C almost year round. He had run for a senator position and won after his term as Governor came to an end. I still referred to him as Governor though. I was left to be looked after by our housekeeper, a stern and efficient woman named . She was in her late forties and never married. She ran the house and monitored my education. My private tutors taught me at home until I was seventeen. They had all been impressed with my intelligence and thirst for knowledge; I had heard them whisper the word 'genius' a few times, but I paid no mind. I was finished with my secondary education by the time I was 15 and for the next two years I was taught all they could teach me about the things they had learned while attending University. My father eventually called a halt to my education, saying that I had learned enough and now it was time to focus on entering society and finding a husband.

That life was not on my agenda. I took up where my mother left off and helped the less fortunate wherever I could. When I was home I would hole up in my father's study and read books and newspapers until I was too tired to keep my eyes open. It was on one of these nights that I came across something that would change my life forever.

I was walking around my father's desk, a book in one hand and cigarette in the other. I was so absorbed in my book that I had forgotten about the lit cigarette until it began to burn my fingers. My arm shot out to rid my fingers of the burning cigarette and I knocked over a picture in the process. The frame made contact with the hard wood floor and the glass shattered. I extinguished the cigarette and then bent to gather the glass pieces. As I turned the frame over and began cleaning up I saw something silver peeking out from behind the picture of my father and a few of his fellow politicians. I reached down and moved the picture aside to reveal a key. My curiosity got the best of me and grabbed the key and walked around and sat behind my fathers' desk trying to fit the key in each of the locked drawers. It didn't fit. I stood and made my way over to where my father had installed a wall safe. He hid it behind a portrait of our family before his political years. I gently lifted the frame off the nail and placed it down near my feet. I stared at the key hole and then at the key in my hand, unsure if snooping was a good idea. Finally I gave in to my desire and lifted the key to the hole. It was a perfect fit. The safe clicked and I opened it to reveal the contents.

There was a large stack of crisp hundred dollar bills nestled on top of a pile of papers and letters. I had come this far I might as well continue, I had thought. I ignored the money and gathered the papers and letters in my hands and walked back to the desk to sit down and peruse them. Guilt was gnawing at me at first. I could hardly lift my eyes to read the first paper, but I managed eventually. By the end of it my guilt was replaced with confusion and I had reached for another paper and another, followed by the letters. The contents of those papers had shocked and appalled me beyond anything I had ever experienced. My father had truly become a dirty politician. I had denied it for years, even though I knew in my heart he was not the same man who had been my dad all those years ago.

The papers, letters and money were proof that the Eighteenth Amendment, that had passed six years ago was based on greed and narrow-mindedness. My father had contributed to the passing of this amendment with a pocket full of pay-off money and assurances that it was for the greater good of America. In reality the amendment was intended as a jumping off point to begin systematically stripping away freedoms from American citizens. Any substance, activity or lifestyle that impaired America's labor force would be discouraged, outlawed and banned as it threatened the profits of the factories and corporations of the richest men in the country. I had always felt that Prohibition was an infringement on American's rights, but I had believed the farce that it was all in an effort to maintain a moral country free from alcohol impaired judgment.

I never liked the idea of a government that policed the morals of its people, but between my mothers death, schooling, charity work, and societal pressure I had not thought about my opinion of the 18th Amendment seriously in a while. I had kept up with the news articles about the exploits of bootleggers like Al Capone that ran Chicago and the various Italian mobsters that ran liquor through New York; that was the moment that I began to plot against a corrupt system in order to restore the freedom to make personal choices. I recalled all I had ever read about bootlegging and the areas that were claimed by violent gangs and ruthless mob bosses and I decided I would leave my mark on the unclaimed Southern states. Cultivating contacts and assembling a crew became my priority, but first I needed to create a new persona in order to be taken seriously.

That night I created my bootlegging alter ego, Freya Jameson. Freya came from the Nordic goddess of war, love, beauty, wisdom, and magic. I loved the idea of that goddess for several reasons, but the main one was the fact that I was waging war on infringers of freedom. Jameson came from the Irish Whiskey that my father had stocked up on before the alcohol 'drought'. Poetic justice, I had thought. I had access to a portion of my father's wealth, which I had usually given to the various charities that I supported. I began to use that money to persuade people to join me and my fake fiancée (Jack Daniels, my favorite drink). This required me to blend into the seedier parts of Houston, and I became a chameleon of sorts quickly. I met Johnny on one of my jaunts to the illegal speakeasies and he agreed to help when I thrust a fistful of cash in his face. I got in contact with a big time rum runner, William McCoy, and I added my name to his list of customers.

I had the booze, I had the men thanks to Johnny's help, and I soon found the perfect place for my headquarters. I wrote to my father and explained to him that my friend had invited me to tour Europe with her family and I would therefore be out of the country and unreachable for some time. He wrote back and expressed his acceptance and did not even bother to check with my friend's family. I left shortly after, Johnny and I checking in on the states that we would provide alcohol for before we headed to Mexico. Claiming our territory was simple, as the cities we planned on delivering to were not as large or criminally organized as the some of the well known eastern cities. If there was any resistance Johnny took care of it, or I paid them off courtesy of .

By the time I turned 18 we had established our routes, had a solid crew and made profits that rivaled the big cities. I paid my men well and provided for them while they rested in Mexico. My take of the cash mainly went to hospitals, women's leagues, churches and disaster relief organizations. I kept a small percentage of the profits, and while it was only about 10% I had accumulated close to a million dollars in less than two years. That money would eventually be used to fight to repeal the 18th Amendment and prevent any new rights stripping legislation from passing. That was my plan and I was succeeding thus far.

I was pulled from my thoughts when I noticed we had pulled into the long dirt drive that led to the house. Johnny parked in front of the cream colored house and turned the engine off, hopping out quickly. I gathered my satchel and turned to open my door just as Johnny opened it and held his hand out to assist me.

"Johnny, I've told you, I can get out of the car on my own" I chastised gently. He smiled sheepishly but did not withdraw his hand. I took it and allowed him to escort me to the house.

"I know, Freya. It's a habit." Johnny said. While he could be a selfish bastard, and a conniving criminal he had always been a gentleman with me. I smiled up at him and laughed softly.

"Of course, Johnny dear, of course. If you need me, I'll be in my office going over the books, and getting everything ready for when the boys get back." He smiled and nodded before walking towards his room.

I entered my small room and went to the bedside table to light the oil lamp that rested there. We didn't have many luxuries here, but we made do. I quickly stripped out of my frivolous dress and took the pins out of my mahogony hair, allowing the illusion bob to uncurl and cascade down to the middle of my back in waves. Opening my chest of drawers I grabbed my favorite pair of stolen jeans, originally belonging to Otto one of my crew, and a black short-sleeved blouse. While the main crew was away I enjoyed dressing in what made me comfortable, I adored men's jeans and loose blouses, and Johnny never commented my fashion choices. I was more careful when the house was full, maintaining my more girlish appearance. It was during the times that my crew was around that I disappeared for a few days to 'meet with 's'. In reality I just visited the bigger cities in Mexico for information, money deposits and supplies. Monterrey was closest to Reynosa, so that was where I went most often.

I slipped into my clothes, not bothering with shoes and grabbed my lamp to light the path to my office. I navigated the narrow corridor and entered my small office quickly. I spent most of my time in this room, and it had a calming effect on my mind. The smell of the books that I kept on the shelves that lined the walls always soothed me after a stressful day. My desk was made from a solid and affordable oak and was not fancy in the least. I padded over to my seat behind the desk and situated myself comfortably. I rifled through my satchel, until my fingers found a small brass key. I always kept my satchel with me; it had the most important parts of my life in it. I had passports, identifications, bank information and the only momentos I bothered taking from my home in Houston, a locket that had a small picture of my mother and father before he ran for office and her wedding ring.

The key fit into the top drawer of my desk, the drawer that help my maps, contact information and accounting books. I wanted to calculate how much had been skimmed from the usual take by the three men I would need to deal with. I went over the numbers and began doing the calculations in my head, it only seemed to be a few thousand dollars a shipment. I was poring over a map, trying to find new exit routes for my crew if there was ever a problem when I felt it.

The hairs on the back of my neck stood up, and the feeling that I was being watched hit me. I had felt this off and on for a month, never in the same place and always intense and unnerving. I had first felt it on a rare rainy day while I was in Monterrey on a supply run. I dismissed it at the time because I was a pale creature in a sea of mocha skinned towns people, of course I was being stared at. The next few times were harder to dismiss. They were often when I was managing my crew near the docks or when I would practice shooting in the areas surrounding my house. Tonight was the first time I felt like I was being watched in my own home. I could hear Johnny's light snores coming from his room down the hall, so I knew that this was either extreme paranoia or someone else was near. I kept my face neutral and folded the maps and placed them in the drawer along with the accounting books I had gone over. I leisurely closed the drawer, not bothering to lock it and slipped the key back in my satchel.

I stretched my limbs slowly, trying in vain to hear any sounds that would indicate the cause for this feeling. I had always been hyper aware of my surroundings and I was good at reading people and their emotions, it was like a sixth sense for me. This hyper-sensitivity always seemed to help me keep one step ahead of everyone else and I always seemed to be able to see the bigger picture. My decisions always seemed to be spot-on as a result, usually getting a favorable outcome. I decided to trust my instincts and investigate outside, to be sure that I was not being watched.

I didn't have a good feeling about going outside _alone_, but I ignored my cautious side and tucked my handgun into the waistband of my jeans just in case. My instincts told me something was out there and I needed to know once and for all. I rose from my seat and threw my satchel over my shoulder. I left the lamp on the desk and walked out of my office, allowing my eyes adjust to the darkness. As I walked outside, past the porch my steps became smaller. I moved as silently as possible scanning my land for movement. I walked around the back of the house into the field that was filled with waist-high corn and weeds. The house used to be a family farm and while we didn't cultivate it the remnants of the previous owner's labors still remained.

A small swishing sound came from behind me as I reached the middle of the field and I turned my head around quickly to scan the area where the noise originated from. My eyes met nothing but the soft swaying of corn, lit by the light of the full moon. The foreboding feeling that had steadily grown since I came outside began to take on new proportions as I heard a soft whisper from in front of me. I slowly turned to face the sound while reaching slowly for my gun. Nothing could have prepared me for the sight that lay in front of me.

My brown eyes locked on glowing red ones set in the pale face of a beautiful woman. My heartbeat quickened but I kept my face neutral, not wanting to show fear. The woman smirked at me and my instincts kicked into overdrive. This woman was not human, nor was she good. The aura of evil fell from her in waves despite her angelic facial features. Her long black hair fell in ringlets around her and swayed slightly in the light breeze. She stood about three inches shorter than me at what seemed to be 5'4. Her frame seemed deceptively frail, she was thin but busty and her lips, still in an evil smirk were full and began to part showing me glinting white teeth. I remained as stoic as possible and her perfect eyebrows rose and she smiled menacingly.

My hand took comfort in the cold metal of my gun and I began to ready myself to shoot when I had an opportunity. I had never killed anyone, but my instincts told me that in this moment it was kill or be killed. I saw the light of the moon reflect off her teeth and they seemed to glisten with something that I couldn't identify, for surely it wasn't simply saliva. My jaw clenched as I heard her open her mouth and speak.

"Hello, my darling Freya. Or should I say Isabella?" Her voice was light and melodic like a chorus of bells in perfect harmony. My ears detected the malice behind her beautiful voice and I tensed again. I honestly was at a loss on how to proceed, but I quickly decided on a course of action. I whipped out the gun that was held in my right hand and pulled the trigger. My eyelids had shut involuntarily shielding my eyes from the blood and gore that was sure to come from such a close range shot. I opened my eyes slowly when I realized I heard no sounds of a body dropping.

My eyes widened as I took in the sight of the woman before me, looking no worse for the wear besides a small dent in between her thin eyebrows. She noticed my shock and laughed a high, tinkling laugh.

"Oh Isabella, you are a brave one. You have yet to run away screaming, though that wouldn't get you far. You stand here, gun still pointing at me, with hardly any signs that you are frightened beyond anything you have ever felt. Your heart is thrumming like a hummingbird, yet your face indicates that you are almost bored. I am so pleased that I found you." Her words made me repress a shudder of fear.

"Found me?" My voice sounded rough and deep in comparison to her high, honey coated words. Her glowing dark red eyes traced my figure from my toes to my face, her appraisal unnerved me further.

"Yes, found you. I've been watching you, child. You have impressed me with your schemes and the power you wield over your men. I have sensed you will do great things for me. I feel that you have a strong mind that I can use for my purposes. You will also make a lovely Vampire." She explained as if speaking to a toddler. My blood ran cold at the last word. Vampire.

I had heard the superstitions of the locals regarding the undead. I had dismissed the thought with my rational mind, but a part of me always believed the truth in the legends. Whole towns sold braids of garlic and crosses in an attempt to keep the evil at bay. I never laughed at their precautions, but a part of me thought their protections were futile. I felt like my mind was stuck on repeat, the word Vampire echoing and growing louder matching the speed of my heart.

"Vampire." My voice was a gravelly whisper. The red-eyed devil grinned.

"Your heart will cease to beat after three days and you will emerge from the fire as one of us." As she spoke she stalked towards me, looking like the evil predator that she was. My muscles locked and I came to a decision. I would not show this evil bitch an ounce of fear or pain for as long as I lived.

She reached me and lifted her small hand to caress my check, her cold skin cooling my flushed face.

"When you awake, you will come to know me as your Mistress; know that it will be Mistress Maria to you." And with that, she lunged at my neck.

I could feel her teeth ripping my skin and my head began to swim as I smelled my blood pouring down her throat. My muscles began to give way and I felt my gun drop. I felt a fire begin to boil in my veins, seeming to spread and intensify with each passing second. It traveled from my neck to the rest of my body and it was the most excruciating pain imaginable.

I felt her unlatch herself from my neck and I let out a groan of pain as I felt the fire burn hotter than I imagined hell would feel.

"That's it Isabella, scream. Scream for me, precious." Maria's voice took on an excited edge. I realized that she thrived on causing other's pain, thrived on the destruction of life. I would be damned if I satisfied her need for my pain. I locked my jaw tighter, so tight I felt like my teeth would crack. I wanted to curse at her, condemning her to the fieriest pits of hell, a place I felt I was visiting right then, but I knew if I opened my mouth a cry of agony would emerge.

"Oh brave one, you will scream eventually. The fire only burns hotter and hotter. It's only a matter of time." Her words rang true as the fire continued to intensify. I felt my body being lifted and I was aware she was holding me to her chest and moving. I could hear the wind whipping past me at an alarming rate, but the coolness of it did not soothe me.

I could vaguely hear her whispering to me about how she would enjoy watching me writhe and scream, but I began to focus my mind on anything but my pain. I thought about how I would kill her, how I would survive, how I would not give in to her demands for me to scream.

The wind was no longer rushing by and I could feel her slow. I heard several voices, growls and angry exclamations. I couldn't distinguish anything at that moment as I was still focused on not showing an ounce of my agony. I felt the arms that locked me against the cold granite painfully drop, and my body came in contact with the ground hard. I was left on the ground, and I heard growls and raised voices that sounded far away. I stopped trying to be aware of my surroundings and dove into my mind.

I thought of my life, the good and the bad, over and over again as I locked my muscles and jaw. The memories kept me from giving Maria the satisfaction she craved. I could feel my body twitch occasionally, but I would not writhe for the evil bitch. Every muscle in my body felt the effects of my stubbornness, aching and pulsing with the need to release itself. Time meant nothing to me as I continued to burn and ache. Years seemed to pass, yet my only focus was on distracting my mind from the unfathomable pain I was in.

My memories repeated in a timeless loop, a sequence that began with my earliest memories and continued on into my last moments. I prayed to God for death, silently begging and pleading for Him to have Mercy and show me death. The fire only burned hotter in response.

As I begged internally for mercy I felt moisture on my face. The tears that had been leaking out of the corners of my shut eyes were hot and ran in a continuous line, dripping down to my ears. This moisture was cool and seemed to be running along my face, as if wiping away my tears and sweat. I felt the cool dampness run along my jaw and dip down to my neck, wiping at the spot that Maria had clamped down on.

"Almost done, kitten. Almost" A voice whispered. The voice was deep but had the smooth and beautiful quality that Maria's had. He began whispering to me, telling me that the burning would soon end. It didn't. While listening to his voice vaguely, I continued repeating my memories, reminding myself of who I was. I was strong, a fighter, compassionate, just…suddenly I heard the malice laced words of Maria.

"It's been more than three days! What is wrong with her?!" So that was how long I'd been in hell?

A new voice joined in, a male whose words were calm and cold, yet I could hear an undertone of pain in them.

"I don't know. I've never seen anything like it before." I wanted to open my eyes, but I knew if I moved at all, I would break, and that wasn't an option in front of Maria. I heard her leave with an angry, inhuman growl.

My personal sweat and tear wiper paused at the base of my throat and I heard him whispering with the new male.

"Do you think she'll turn?"

"I honestly don't know. It might be better for her if she didn't." The pain was more prominent in his voice now.

"Jasper!" My cleanser admonished. He continued his ministrations and I could almost feel the affection flow from him to me. "She looks like so young and innocent. But damn is she tough. I've watched her and she hasn't moved or let out a single whimper. Maria's venom burns hotter than Hades and she's as quiet as a goddamn mouse!"

"I've noticed, Peter. She feels it though. I can feel her pain and her determination. Maria sure knows how to pick 'em." Jasper said quietly, and I could detect a light Texan drawl. That comforted me. Something told me that these two were not the diabolical evil that Maria was and I wanted desperately to see their faces. Gathering all the strength I possessed I forced my eyes open.

My eyes tried to focus, but the images were hazy. I could make out a dirty blond head near me and I knew that this was my cleanser, Peter. I could tell he was paler than Maria, but I couldn't distinguish much else besides the color of his compassionate eyes. Burgandy.

"Jasper, she opened her eyes! Is the pain gone? Why are her eyes brown?" Peter spoke in an excited whisper. My eyes followed Peter's and landed on Jasper.

My vision seemed to clear and I saw Jasper's own burgundy eyes lock on my own. He had ear length wavy honey blonde hair that fell beautifully over his eyes. His face reminded me of the sketches and portraits I had seen of the gods of the ancient world. His cheekbones were high and his nose was perfect and straight. His lips had a plump, juicy look to them. I never wanted to close my eyes.

"She's still burning. I can't understand why she is able to open her eyes and I don't know why her eyes are brown." Jaspers spoke, never looking away from me. I noticed his eyes were probably as pain-filled as my own and I didn't understand why that was.

"Kitten, were your eyes brown before?" Peter asked me. I didn't know how, but I managed to nod ever so slightly. With that movement the floodgates opened and I had to slam my eyes shut to try and keep from screaming. The fire seemed come alive in the worst possible way and for a moment I thought I would literally burst into flame. Then as suddenly as it had grown it began to recede. I felt a sudden welcome coolness began in the tips of all my limbs and the fire began to consolidate as it retreated. I could feel it pulsing and it seemed to concentrate itself in my heart. I could hear my own heartbeat thrum and accelerate and I wondered if it would fly out of my chest in a ball of flame.

When it seemed that I could last no longer in my stoic state, my heart suddenly stopped. The stillness unnerved me, and for a moment I thought I had finally been granted the mercy I had begged for and was dead. That thought was ruined by Peter's voice.

"Open your eyes, kitten. It's over."

I listened to his words and slowly opened my eyes to a whole new world.

**A/N- Next chapter will have Jasper's POV, and maybe Peter's…. If you are confused at all let me know when you review and I'll try and clear it up for you. Hit that button for me and tell me what you think! Thanks!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N- I don't own these characters of course. I just want to borrow them to satisfy my creativity. **

**I hope you like it so far! Thank you to those who took the time to review the first chapter, it really made me uber-happy! This chapter will start to shed light on Jasper and Peter's personalities but they will evolve with more interaction with Bella. Basically, this won't be that action packed but if you bear with me it will get better in the next chapters. **

**Note: ****Taylor Kitsch is who envision Peter to be. Google him, he's pretty sexy.**

**Reviews are appreciated and are helpful, so don't be shy ya'll!**

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**Jasper  
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**October 27, 1927**

Sixty-four years. I had been in hell for sixty-four years. While the scenery didn't match up to my human idea of hell, it was hell nonetheless. The sun had just sunk behind the horizon of the desert that stretched in front of me, and I missed its warmth already. I couldn't feel cold and the heat from the sun never really warmed me but the sun had always made a part of me feel comforted.

I remembered my human life clearer than most, and it was both a blessing and a curse. I knew that I had been a good man, a good leader and a fighter for freedom from oppression. I had been a Major for the Confederate army, defending the south from the oppression of the North. It had never sat right with me that the will of another entity could force another to bend and conform.

That thought almost made me laugh now. My life had become what I had fought against. I was aware that another's will was bending my own for its own purposes. _Her_ own purposes to be precise.

Maria was the end all and be all of my life now. When I had first laid eyes on her and her blonde sisters I faintly remember thinking them to be the most beautiful creatures I had ever seen. As they had approached me my instincts had told me that something wasn't right about them and I should run, but my gentlemanly side had overridden that. How I rue that day.

Maria had brought me into this existence and hadn't let go of me since. Her physical beauty had never diminished, but her once awe inspiring effect had. I had grown to hate her as much as I loved her. The hate was easy to understand, she used me on a daily basis. I was in charge of her newborn army. I taught them to fight, to obey, to hate and to kill the enemy. She used me to dispose of them when she was done with them, a cycle of killing that never ended. Oh how I hated her.

The love was harder to explain. I did not love her romantically, although we have fucked countless times. The love was one inspired by the power she wielded over me; she fed me, clothed me and rewarded me. It's the kind of love that a pet might feel for its owner. It sickened me, but there was nothing else out there for me. I deserved nothing. The atrocities I had committed only strengthened that argument, I was a killer and nothing I could do would change that fact. I would suffer in this hell as my punishment until God deemed it fit that I join in the hell that I had imagined sixty-four years ago.

I sighed quietly and turned my back away from the last rays of the dying sun and began to walk back to camp at a human pace. My only priorities tonight were ensuring the thirteen newborns we had on hand did not rip each other to shreds. Lucy and Nettie had been spending more and more time away, and my instincts told me that something was brewing with those two. Maria had also been disappearing without explanation over the past month. Her disappearances weren't unusual; she often disappeared once or twice without explanation when she was stalking a human to be in her army. It was strange that she had been doing it for a month with no new newborn to speak of.

Perhaps she was growing more cautious in light of the Volturi's recent involvement. In the last battle against Emilio's clan, for the territory south of Monterrey, the Volturi had showed up unexpectedly and massacred every newborn on the battle field. The only fighters that were spared were Maria and her sisters, Peter and I. Emilio had fled before the Volturi's arrival, sensing he was losing and had probably survived and was regrouping.

Maria wasn't one to be unprotected for long and after only a week had passed since the Volturi left she had created five new vampires. In the next week she created three more and her sisters had spawned the rest. The batch Peter and I were in charge of currently were less than two months old and while they were strong they were like rabid animals with no thoughts other than the thirst. That didn't surprise either of us as we had never met or dealt with a newborn that was capable of control or rational thought in our entire existence.

I drew closer to where we had made camp. I could see a large bonfire going and about half of the newborns surrounded it seemingly entranced by the flames. My vampire eyesight caught the movements of four others coupled off and having sex in the shadows that bordered the camp. Another two were fighting. The emotions that hit me as I drew closer were staggering. Lust, hunger, hate, aggression, frustration.

I took a breath and walked into one of the four tents that were arranged in a semicircle around the bonfire. Maria and her sisters had their own private tents while the last tent was left for the rest of us. Peter and I were the only ones that really used it; the newborns tended to fare better outside, their aggression unimpeded by the canvas walls.

Peter was in his usual spot in the tent, back against a corner using the pole that created the frame as an anchor. His long legs stretched out in front of him and his dirty-blonde head bent over a book. He greeted me without glancing up from the book we had both read repeatedly. He had been in Maria's army almost as long as I had, being turned in 1875 at the age of 25. Peter was a couple inches shorter than me, standing at 6'1 but he was stockier and his muscles bigger.

"Have you seen Maria?" I asked him, curious if she had given a reason for her absence.

"Nope. The crazy bitch took off awhile ago and didn't say shit. She looked creepier than usual when she left though. She's definitely up to something." Peter's voice held his hate for our maker. He resented her with everything he had and I always wondered why he hadn't made a run for it. He didn't hold his guilt close to his heart like I did; he wasn't using this as justice for his sins.

I had come close to committing treason against Maria by hinting to Peter that if he ran, I wouldn't go after him like I knew I would be ordered to do. He had grinned at my obvious loyalty, but said 'it isn't time yet'. He wouldn't elaborate and I didn't push.

My years with Peter by my side as my brother and best friend taught me that he was usually right and cryptic as fuck. I knew he had a power, but what it was I never could figure out and Peter never explained it. The closest he had ever got to explaining it was, "I know things. Good, bad, now, then, things to come…" He had trailed off with a glazed look coming over his eyes.

I didn't get it then and I don't think I get it now. My best guess was that he had strong powers of intuition that helped him know how to deal with others, using his knowledge of their past, present and future to help. He had known about me and my past before I had really told him the details. He knew the best way to deal with the newborns when we weren't training or fighting and he seemed to be able to predict what was coming down the line in advance. It was creepy as shit sometimes.

"I'm pretty sure she's picking up a human to turn. She wants a new one that will be gifted." I said. Peter looked up and his excited red eyes met mine. I felt his anticipation and excitement and I didn't understand why he was feeling that way. I sent him a wave of curiosity, my way of asking what was going on with him. He grinned at me.

"I think you're right. I also think that the human she will pick will be special. Very special indeed." He winked.

"You think? Is that your fortune-teller way of saying you know?" I ribbed him. He always said shit like that when he very well magically knew that he was right.

"I'm keeping my trap shut. I have a good feeling though." Peter's good feelings always boded well so I relaxed. I suddenly felt a wave of caution coming from him and I watched his face darken slightly.

"I think the shit's gonna hit the fan soon with Lucy and Nettie. We need to be prepared. We need to protect…" He trailed off and I knew he wouldn't continue. I nodded at him; I had been thinking the same thing for awhile now.

"They went off again. They are getting damn greedy. I overheard them asking Maria to make a play for Mexico City, the actual city, not just the outskirts like we normally do. She turned them down and they didn't seem too thrilled with her. As fucking greedy as they all are, Maria at least has the sense to know that big city domination would get us all fried by the Volturi." I said as quietly as I could, I didn't want to be overheard. Peter nodded his understanding and turned back to his book.

My thoughts were swirling around a course of action against Lucy and Nettie if necessary. I kept my ears tuned to the happenings outside of the tent, making sure the newborns behaved while monitoring the emotions they were giving off. The lust, thirst and hate never dissipated and it took a lot from to not reflect it back out and intensify it for everyone. The only source of calm or rationality was Peter and I wished I could focus solely on his emotions, but I had a job to do.

I heard the climaxes of the couples that I had seen in the shadows and I hoped the lust would decrease, for my own sake. I couldn't remember how many times I had fucked Maria or one of her sisters in spite of my hatred towards them just because newborns only seemed able to feel horniness, thirst and rage. I hated it with a passion when their emotions got the better of me, and it was like that more often than not.

I suddenly heard several angry growls and I shot to my feet, thinking a fight was about to start. Peter was right behind me as I flew out of the tent ready to separate whoever was going at it. My nose picked up the sweetest smell I had ever encountered and I suddenly understood the growls. Blood. Freesias and strawberries permeated the air and the source was being clutched to my maker.

Peter shoved me towards a few newborns that looked ready to pounce on the figure that Maria held and I stopped breathing and flew at a newborn that was getting ready to pounce. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Maria go into my tent with the woman and I heard a soft body fall to the ground inside. I had the newborn in a headlock and was trying to calm him with my power. Peter had started yelling at a few of the other newborns and he too held one down, his knees on the male's chest.

I tried to expand my power to hit every newborn with my manufactured calm and I could see it start to work. Peter hopped off the newborn he had held to the ground and stepped away as he jumped to his feet. I decided to send out a wave of apathy to the group and soon most had returned to their previous activities. I saw Maria leave the tent she had dropped the human off in and I strolled over to her, keeping my facial features blank and cold. Peter was a step behind me as I reached her and greeted her with a curt nod.

"We will have a new addition in a few days time. I expect her to be trained and ready to fight within a month. I gathered that she will have a gift, so train her well. If her gift proves useful we may keep her." Maria's sharp words suddenly made me angry.

Keep her? Like she was a fucking dog for Maria to own? I shook the anger and thoughts away, I had never felt this strongly in response to Maria's dictation of a newborn's fate and it confused me. Maybe I was more sick of this shit than I had originally thought.

I had felt Peter stiffen behind me at Maria's words as well. I didn't know what to make of any of this so I just nodded and watched Maria walk to her tent. I turned to face Peter when I felt his emotions shift to an excited restlessness, an unusual combination for him. He jerked his head in the direction of our tent in indication that he wanted to see the changing human. In Maria or her sister's presence we tended to use gestures or code to communicate, not wanting to give them any ammunition against us.

I followed him to our tent and held my breath as I entered; her scent was too sweet to inhale without consequences. Peter seemed to breathe easily and I marveled at it, but decided that she must not smell the same to him. There was a kerosene lamp in the middle of the tent that lit the woman's stiff figure. I could feel her excruciating pain and was amazed that she hadn't made a sound. She wore what looked to be a loose pair of men's Levis and a simple black button-down short sleeved shirt that was torn, missing buttons and I knew was covered in blood. She was barefoot and still had a purse slung over her shoulder. Peter knelt next to her and quickly disentangled the woman from the purse so he could presumably search for identification. He whispered an apology to the girl that I was sure she hadn't heard, as her emotions didn't shift a bit from the determination and pain I was getting. He moved away from her slightly and sat down waiting for me to join him.

I took my perch next to him and he dumped the contents of her purse on the ground in front of us. There were two U.S Passports and I gathered them up and opened them. They were both legitimate, which meant that she spent a great deal of money on forging a new identity for herself. One read her name to be Isabella Marie Swan while the other stated Freya Jameson. I looked over to Peter's finds and I saw him holding up three different driver's licenses. Two were from Texas with the names Freya or Isabella while the third was from Louisiana and had the name Marie Renee Whitaker.

"What the hell is this girl involved in?" Peter whispered to me at vampire speed. I shook my head and handed him the passports while I picked up a stack official looking documents that were coming out of a couple envelopes. My eyes scanned the pages quickly and I discovered they were bank records and information regarding her account balance and donations. I handed these to Peter as well and took a minute to process the numbers I had seen. The woman that lay at our feet, changing into a blood-sucking vampire was a charity endorsing millionaire.

My eyes fell on the last of it, a couple pieces of jewelry. I gingerly picked them up for examination. There was a gold heart shaped locket with an intricate pattern etched on its face branching out from a single diamond in the center. I opened it carefully and saw a small picture of a couple; the woman looked like an older version of Isabella or Freya or whatever her name was. The male had a sharp look about him and his hand rested on the woman's shoulder. Her parent's most likely.

I felt Peter's shock and I knew that he had come to same conclusion I had about the papers he had finished reading. I handed him the locket as I lifted the ring to inspect it. It looked like an engagement ring. It was made from a thin rose gold and held a solitary diamond that looked to be about a carat. It was simple but beautiful. I wondered if it was hers. I handed the ring to Peter trying not to imagine the girl with a fiancée that would never see her again.

I found myself gazing at the woman, noting how her long hair spread out around her head in waves. Her skin was almost as pale as mine and I wondered how much more it would pale. The light reflected off the tears that ran in a steady stream from the corners of her eyes, dripping past her ears onto the ground.

"I don't think it's hers." Peter said quietly. I knew he meant the ring. I felt a tension release from inside me that I hadn't been aware was there. I could see Peter smirking out of the corner of my eye. I wanted to punch the knowing smirk off his face. My attention was diverted when I saw the girl's jaw clench further. Her pain was intensifying and I knew I couldn't be near for very much longer; I was already in agony. Peter noticed my tense position and he quickly put everything back into the purse and set it aside in his own things knowing no one would touch it. He grabbed my arm and dragged me from the tent swiftly. The newborns barely looked up as we ran a few hundred yards away from the camp site.

I took a deep breath and released the pain I had absorbed, feeling guilty when I saw Peter flinch.

"Sorry." I ground out. He shook his head, dismissing my apology. His face soon took on that irritating knowing smile and I rolled my eyes.

"Isabella sure is a trooper, I wonder if she'll crack. I can't wait for her to wake up!" Peter sent a wave of excitement to me and I fought the urge to do a jig. I scowled at him in warning to tone it down and he complied.

"Well I guess I should get back to her and make sure none of the newborns attack while she still has blood in her." Peter turned and ran back to the tent. I stood there for a moment and thought about the upcoming days, knowing I would need to train with the newborns away from camp so I wouldn't get distracted by Isabella's pain. I wondered why Peter picked that name as her real one, but realized it was probably something that he just 'knew'. I steeled myself and followed Peter's trail back to camp, giving my tent a wide berth that didn't help much and made my way to Maria's tent.

I found her brushing her long black hair, gazing at nothing with a sadistic smile on her face. Her emotions matched her expression. She looked up as I entered and smiled devilishly.

"Maria." I inclined my head in greeting. "We are regrouping ahead of schedule. Are we going to attack Emilio again soon? We were interrupted by the Volturi before we officially claimed his territory."

"Yes, we will be officially claiming that territory within a fortnight. I can't wait to see how my new one fares." Her soprano voice grated on my already frayed nerves. I kept my face emotionless as I answered.

"I will be taking the newborns away from camp to train and do reconnaissance into Emilio's status. Peter will stay with the human, as usual. Will you be joining us in the field?"

"I will check in with you after I speak with my sisters. Have you seen them?" She asked. I shook my head. Her eyes darkened and her emotions shifted to distrust and anger, but she said nothing. I gave her a nod before I turned on my heel and left to gather the newborns for training.

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**Peter  
**

I heard Jasper gathering the newborns for training in the desert as I sat near Isabella thinking. Aside for the occasional muscle spasm Izzy, as I had taken to referring to her, gave no indication that she felt or heard anything. I knew she had at least two more full days of this so I decided to make myself comfortable as I kept my vigil. It was always my job to watch the turning of humans and I also was the newborns keeper. While Jasper trained them to fight and obey, I made sure they had the bare minimum of necessities like clothes and I made sure to break up any fights when Jasper couldn't diffuse the tension with his power.

I kept a solid eye on the ones that I knew would give us trouble and that usually helped to prevent any unnecessary fights. Hell, it was all unnecessary really. I knew deep inside that there was something better out there, a life that didn't involve so much death and destruction. That feeling helped sustain me, it kept me sane until I knew it was time to reach for it. The time was getting closer; that much I knew.

I had a feeling about Izzy and that feeling told me that she would be the spark for change. Change for myself, for the whole fucked up fight for territory in the south, but especially a change for Jasper. I smiled at how I knew she would change him but I kept my thoughts from wandering.

Jasper had once theorized aloud about my power, and he seemed to hit the nail on the head unwittingly. I had a gift for intuition, plain and simple. I knew stuff about people's past, present and future. I could tell which newborns would fuck up and get themselves killed in what way and I knew when bad shit was coming our way. I did my best to protect Jasper and myself from the attacks I knew would come and I usually succeeded with minimal damage.

Jasper and I were both pretty marked up, proof that we had served Maria for over half a century. I knew that Jasper thought that each of his scars were his just desserts for the vampires he's killed, but I saw them as proof that I could survive until I found a better way to live. I had tried to talk sense into my brother, trying to get him to ease up on his guilt trip to no avail. That was where I could see Izzy stepping in and shifting his being to accept his mistakes and move on. He wasn't a self-pitying drama queen, he just didn't believe he should be saved from the hell that Maria sired us into.

I heard Maria shift around her tent before running into the desert. My gut told me she knew that her sisters were plotting against her and Izzy, Jasper and I would be pawns in her quest for revenge. I vowed to protect them both though I knew they would be able to take care of themselves.

Time seemed to pass quickly for me, though I knew it was dragging for Izzy. I tried to get a read on what her gift would be but I couldn't grasp at any one thing it could be. I crept closer to her with each passing hour until I sat next to her, legs crossed under me, watching her blank face.

Her skin was hardening and paling. The heat that she had given off in the first two days had diminished. I saw the differences in her facial structure. When I had first seen her she had been beautiful, but I could tell that as a vampire she would surpass the beauty of all others. Her lips had plumped even more and were a raspberry red. Her cheekbones were more defined and her nose had thinned and aligned perfectly. She seemed to have grown an inch in height making her an even 5'8 and any excess fat she may have had had disappeared leaving only toned muscle. She had a decent sized chest before, but I was sure she had grown larger in that area as well. I couldn't wait for her to wake up and keep us company!

I got up silently and made my way out of the tent, intent on finding some water to help clean her up a bit. There was still dried blood and sweat from the initial stages of the change that I wanted to free her of. The sun had gone down and it was fast approaching the end of three days. I ran towards the nearest town, knowing there were wells along the dirt roads for animals making the trek. I ran for a little under an hour, a couple hundred miles away from camp when I found a water source that I could use to fill my jug. As soon as I filled it I ran back, going faster in anticipation.

I reached camp quickly and I could see Jasper and the newborns approaching from the east, Maria flanking him. I held back a groan at seeing the sadistic cunt. I went to my tent and filled a small bowl with some water and ripped some cloth from an old shirt to use as a wash cloth. I sat next to Izzy and took in her still state and knew instinctively she still hadn't screamed. I grinned down at her, what a tough little kitten.

Dipping the cloth in the cool water, I wrung out the excess and began to clean her face gently, not wanting to cause any further pain. I whispered in my most soothing voice, "Almost done, kitten. Almost."

My ears picked up on the newborns settling into their leisure activities of fucking and fighting. The sounds of the tent flap being moved alerted me to a presence. Jasper. He made no sounds but I smelled his scent, apples and cedar mixed with a musk that was all his own. I cleaned her brow and worked my way down her face, being thorough. I made it to her neck, careful not to put to much unnecessary pressure on the crescent scar Maria had left. The blood came off quickly and the scent of it was no longer appealing.

I smelled her before I heard her, and I didn't bother turning. Maria paced behind me, clearly agitated. Her citrus and sunflower scent threatened to turn my vampire stomach.

"It's been more than three days! What is wrong with her?!" I rolled my eyes, the bitch had no patience.

"I don't know. I've never seen anything like it before." Jasper spoke up, and I could hear a trace of pain in his voice. We could all hear her heart still beating, so we knew she was alive and changing, but it had gone past three days and that had never happened before. Maria growled and stalked out of the room.

I began to worry for Izzy. I knew she would be my sister, a bond I never had in my human or vampire years and I didn't want to give it up before it had begun. What if she didn't turn? I began to doubt my gift irrationally. I was usually so calm and collected, knowing if things would work out or not; but in this instance my emotions were getting the best of me.

"Do you think she'll turn?" I asked Jasper, hoping for reassurance.

"I honestly don't know. It might be better for her if she didn't." Jasper's words reflected his own hatred of this life, but that wasn't the kind of shit I wanted to hear.

"Jasper!" I said sharply. I continued my ministrations and I allowed my affection for Izzy to come to the surface of my thoughts, wanting Jasper to feel it.

"She looks like so young and innocent. But damn is she tough. I've watched her and she hasn't moved or let out a single whimper. Maria's venom burns hotter than Hades and she's as quiet as a goddamn mouse!" I said with a bit of pride for Izzy.

"I've noticed, Peter. She feels it though. I can feel her pain and her determination. Maria sure knows how to pick 'em." I could still hear the pain but also a hint of pride came from his quiet voice.

My hand stilled at the juncture of her shoulder and neck when I saw her open her eyes. I froze as her eyes landed on me. They were so beautiful. They were milk chocolate colored and seemed deep and wise. They were also full of pain and I felt a pang of hurt for her. My mind caught up with the situation quickly and I grew more excited.

"Jasper, she opened her eyes! Is the pain gone? Why are her eyes brown?" I whispered, turning my head to him. His eyes were locked on Izzy and he was projecting his emotions. Awe, hope, sadness and affection. I turned back to Izzy only to find her staring at Jasper.

"She's still burning. I can't understand why she is able to open her eyes and I don't know why her eyes are brown." Jasper whispered. I was confused.

"Kitten, were your eyes brown before?" I asked gently. I didn't really expect a response but I wanted to offer my voice as a distraction from her pain. I could hear her heart speeding up I knew it was getting to the end, and with the end came the absolute worst of the pain.

I saw the barest of nods from Izzy and I could not have been more shocked or proud of her coherency while burning. As suddenly as those feelings came they were replaced by worry when her eyes suddenly slammed shut and she tensed tightly. Her heart began to race until it almost sounded like one continuous beat.

Suddenly it was silent. Jasper unleashed a torrent of emotions that shifted too fast for me to identify. The stillness became too much for me to bear, and I broke the silence.

"Open your eyes, kitten. It's over." I couldn't hide the happy tone my voice held. She obliged me and opened her eyes once again.

They were still brown.

**A/N- Alrighty, so now that there is a bit of background for Jasper and Peter and now that the groundwork for the characters personalities is starting to come out I can get more involved in the action and romance. **

**Warning: I think it's nuts to have Bella and Jasper do the whole love at first sight shit, I mean it works in some stories, but in this one it won't so they will not be getting it on in the next chapter or two. I want their relationship to develop in a way that will bond them for eternity, so a slow to medium pace is how I'm gonna play it. That's not to say there wont be _attraction_ ****at first sight….**

**The next chapter will focus on Bella getting a grasp on her new situation and perhaps even using a power or two (hint hint). Also some Bella, Jasper and Peter bonding will commence So stay tuned!**

**Thanks again for the reviews. **

**Any questions, comments or suggestions? Hit the review button!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N- I don't own Twilight. I do own my plot and I like it. **

**Thank you all for the reviews and for just reading my story, it means a lot. I am digging the reviews that tell me what works for ya'll and what doesn't so keep 'em coming!**

_**Italics**_** are thoughts, just a head's up. **

**On with the feature presentation…**

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**Bella**

**October 31, 1927**

My eyes had opened at the encouragement of Peter and I fought to remain as calm as I had when I was burning. Being calm came easier now that the fires of hell weren't lapping at me. My mind seemed to be able to process many things at once, but I tried to focus on what I was seeing. I could see everything in a detail I had never imagined existed. I could make out the weave of the canvas walls that surrounded me. The light that was placed in the middle of the room seemed superfluous and I knew that I would have the same clarity in the dark. I felt Peter and Jasper's eyes on me, waiting for something. I didn't know what I was supposed to be doing, but I was done lying prone on the ground.

I decided to sit up; expecting my body to respond like it would have if I had still been human. I expected my muscles to be sore and tired from being locked for four days. They weren't. I had shot up in a seated position quickly, unsure how I had done so. I saw Jasper tense and Peter move away from the position he'd been holding by my side. I took a breath, and I suddenly realized I hadn't been breathing at all for the past 5 minutes. My head swam as new scents assaulted my nose. I could smell _everything_.

I could smell the dirt that made up the ground I was sitting on, the canvas, the oil burning in the lamp. I smelt the two beings with me and I had to hold back a smile at how nice they smelled. Peter smelled like blueberries and vanilla mixed with something earthy that only brought to mind a forest in the morning. Jasper's scent nearly made me moan. Mmm… Apples, cedar and something that made me want to close my eyes and just breathe it in over and over again. I quickly shifted my thoughts in order to keep my face neutral.

I took in the positions of my watchers and realized they looked wary. I didn't know why, I mean I just 'woke up', what was the worst I could do? It wasn't like I was Maria, whom I'd gathered ran the show around here. Mistress Maria indeed. _We'll see about that, bitch_. I couldn't stop the smirk from forming on my face and the guys noticed. I could see Jaspers look of confusion and Peter's sly smile.

"Where is she?" I asked. My voice scared me for a moment, but I quickly controlled myself. It wasn't the high tinkling of Maria's voice, and I was thankful for that. It was slightly deeper, but had a smooth, sensual quality that it hadn't had before.

Jasper shot a look at Peter that I couldn't read. I felt that I would overflow with curiosity soon.

"Who?" Jasper asked, his voice sounded better than it had while I was burning. I liked it; it had an odd calming effect.

"The sadistic bitch that bit me. Where the fuck is she?" I replied, my voice came out lower and I could swear that I growled. I had plotted the ways I wanted to kill her, and I would not be deterred. Peter looked at me with dawning realization while Jasper still looked ready for anything.

"Now is not the time for that Izzy." Peter said seriously. I studied him for a moment and came to the conclusion that he knew that I wanted her dead. How did he know my intentions? There was something odd about him, but I knew he was right. I was a strategist, and I knew that it would take more than a half-assed plan executed in rage to kill her. I sighed and I knew Peter took it as acceptance.

"Izzy?" I asked. A small smile was beginning to twitch on my lips. Peter grinned back at me, his burgundy eyes glowing with warmth. I could tell Jasper was growing almost as confused as I was, and I wondered why.

_How is she being so rational? Most newborns can't even speak for at least a month after they turn, and she's here chatting with us like its nothing? Why can't I feel her emotions? I get tiny flickers but then it's blank. And what the hell did Peter mean, about it not being the right time?_

I froze. That sounded like Jasper but his lips hadn't moved. I couldn't hear him anymore and I was starting to lose my patience with the whole situation. What had he meant about feeling my emotions?

"You can read emotions?" I asked Jasper, ready for some answers. He looked shocked and I nearly laughed. Peter was chuckling at his face, but I just watched him, waiting for an explanation.

"How did you know? Yes, I can read emotions and I can influence them as well." He spoke quietly. I thought for a second and brought forth my own feelings of confusion.

"Can you feel that?" I asked, wanting to test him. He shook his head. I thought about how I wanted him to know how confused I was and suddenly it seemed to register on his face.

"You're confused?" He asked me gently. I nodded. We could figure out whatever gift Maria had promised I would have later.

"You were bitten by Maria and you are a vampire now." Peter spoke up. I rolled my eyes, I knew that already. Peter sensed my impatience and he shook out his long, shaggy blond hair and chuckled.

"Why did she choose me? She said she had been watching me for a month. There's nothing special about me, besides my bootlegging, and that probably won't help her." I asked. I saw the surprise cross their faces.

"Bootlegging? That's what you're into?" Peter chuckled again. I threw him an exasperated look.

"Yes, and if you want I'll tell you all about it after you tell me what the hell I'm doing here and why." I said firmly. Peter lost his smile and his eyes turned slightly sad. Jasper cleared his throat and my eyes found his.

"Maria turned you because she sensed you would have a gift as a vampire. That's her gift, she can sense power from humans and vampires. She can't tell what their power is or what it could be, she just knows that it's there." He explained. I nodded in understanding.

"You are here because Maria wanted you in her army. Newborns, which is what we call vampires less than a year old, are stronger and faster than older vampires because they still carry the blood they had as humans. Maria creates newborns to fight her battles." Peter said.

I gazed at both of them in turn, a bad feeling grew inside me. "What is she fighting for?" My question seemed to still them both for a moment.

"Feeding territory." Jasper answered, his cold voice back. My mind raced back to all I had ever heard about vampires as a human, what they ate was a major detail.

"So she spawns vampires to take over territory so she can have her pick of humans?" I asked, wanting to be clear. They nodded. I was disgusted. Maria was essentially grabbing land like she was a cattle farmer. Humans were the cattle in that scenario. I realized that I would have to eat at some point and I immediately vowed to hold off as long as possible, I wasn't planning on killing an innocent human for my own needs.

"What do you guys do for Maria?" I asked trying to distract my self from my thoughts on drinking blood. Peter and Jasper exchanged wary looks and I wanted to know what they were wary of. I heard them suddenly.

_I hope she doesn't lump us in with that fucking cunt, we didn't ask for this. Izzy is gonna change everything anyway, but I don't want her mad or mistrusting with us in the beginning_. Peter thought.

_Well let's see…I'm Maria's second in command, courtesy of my ability to manipulate the volatile emotions of the newborns that I'm in charge of teaching to be merciless killers. Oh and I also get the pleasant job of disposing of the newborns that Maria doesn't want or need anymore. Fucking great, the first rational newborn in the entire existence of newborns gets the privilege of understanding how much of a fucking monster I am. _Jasper thought. His face was blank but I could swear I felt his disgust and self-loathing. My heart ached for him.

I wasn't sure if I should tell them what had just happened, but I decided to ask a few more questions before I revealed too much about me. Peter still looked unsure but he smiled slightly at me and I realized that he wanted to be my friend and was scared of my reaction.

"I watch over the newborns and make sure they don't run around naked or kill each other when we're not in battle. I also take them hunting when Maria lets us feed." He looked down. I reached over and patted his knee. I couldn't blame him for having to eat, even if it made me want to starve myself. I looked towards Jasper, waiting for an explanation on what I had heard.

"I train the newborns in battle. I show them the quickest ways to take down the enemy and I teach them all skills necessary to execute a good plan. They aren't that great at it, most are too blinded by their thirst to be very useful in recon or strategizing. They respond well in battle and are motivated by their thirst and the rage they feel naturally that I intensify." Jasper's voice was clinical, but I knew that he hated it and probably himself as well. I noticed he didn't mention the disposal part, but I didn't call him on it. I decided I wanted him to feel my acceptance and I sent it out to him. He lifted his eyes from the floor and they met mine. He smiled slightly and he looked surprised and pleased. I allowed my lips to form a tiny smile in response, before looking down.

I gasped and my hands flew to the top portion of my ripped blouse, tugging the edges together. I wasn't exactly a prude, but I didn't want to show my assets off after an hour of acquaintance. The guys heard my gasp and jumped into crouches automatically. For the first time since I had awoken I was slightly fearful of the two. My eyes traced the crescent marks that littered their exposed flesh and I realized these two could be as lethal as Maria if they wanted to. I redirected my thoughts and decided to rely on my instincts; they told me Jasper and Peter were going to be important to me and that they would not hurt me.

After I had calmed my irrational worries, I noticed they were still wary of me and I didn't like that at all. I needed them to calm down like I had so I could fix my problem. I automatically focused on my own calm willing them both to feel it like I had done earlier with Jasper. They relaxed and stood almost instantly. They exchanged a glance before both turning to stare at me in shock.

"Did you do that?" Peter asked. I nodded slightly, hoping they wouldn't be angry. Peter smiled but looked thoughtful. Jasper just continued to watch me intensely.

"Do you think she's like you? An empath?" Peter asked Jasper. Jasper shook his head.

"I think there's more to her than that." He replied. I looked away from his penetrating gaze.

"I think you're right there, brother." Peter's tone was full of amusement. I huffed in irritation, this wasn't helping my problem.

"That's all well and good, boys. Really, all this speculation about me is endearing. However, do you think we could do this some other time when my goods aren't falling out of my ripped and bloodied blouse?" I said sarcastically. Jasper grinned, something that I had a feeling he hadn't done in a long time. Peter laughed as he scurried around the tent looking for something. He came back to me with a men's white long sleeve button down shirt.

"Here kitten, take this." I took the garment from him and sniffed it warily. It smelled like Jasper. I shot Peter a curious glance, wondering why he was giving me something that didn't belong to him.

"The shirt on my back is my only shirt, my others all got tore up. It's that or what you got on Izzy." He explained.

"Do you mind?" I lifted the shirt in Jasper's direction in question.

"It's all yours Isabella." He replied with a smirk. I stood up, amazed at how fluid every movement seemed and turned around. I walked towards the back corner of the tent, unbuttoning the remaining buttons of my blouse as I moved. I shrugged out of the blouse and let it drop to the floor behind me. I bent my head forward to assess my jeans, noting that they were stain free. I felt my hair swing forward and I took a moment to examine it, it seemed to have grown longer and my gentle waves had turned into loose curls as it fell around my face.

I had assumed the guys would turn away, but that assumption proved false as I heard their surprised intake of unnecessary breath. I resisted the urge to turn around and scold them.

"What in the hell are you gasping about? Never seen a naked back before? Of all the things to get excited about…" I trailed off in embarrassed irritation.

"It's not that, Izzy, though you do have a lovely figure-" Peter was cut off by a growl from Jasper.

"What he means to say, is you have a tattoo on your back, Isabella." Jasper's honey tone soothed my emotions. I suppressed a chuckle. Hadn't they ever seen a woman with a tattoo? They were vampires, shouldn't they have seen it all by now?

"What of it? It's been there since I started bootlegging two years ago." After I had created Freya Jameson I relished in the freedom I was fighting for. To mark that emancipation from unjust acts, I had visited a tattoo parlor on a trip to Philadelphia. Texas was too conservative to tattoo a young lady, so I made a trek to a spot that I had heard had no qualms about such sexist nonsense.

I had walked into the parlor with a design in mind, and walked out four hours later with my freedom stamp on me for life. Apparently, it was eternity now. Nestled on my upper back was a Phoenix, whose wings were reminiscent of angel wings. The wings lay on my shoulder blades and it had the illusion that they were my own.

"Tattoos are essentially scars Isabella. Scars are supposed to heal when a human transforms into a vampire." Jasper explained. "But your Tattoo looks almost fresh, it's amazing."

I slipped Jasper's shirt on and began to button up quickly. It was long and I decided to tie it up in a knot at my waist. I turned back around and was rolling up the too long sleeves when I threw the guys a smirk.

"I think it's safe to say I'm different." I replied. They both nodded their heads in agreement. I felt their awe and trepidation and I realized that I needed to begin to get my head in the game and figure out what I needed to do to take Maria down. I walked back over to Peter and Jasper slowly, gauging their emotions as I approached.

Something deep inside me told me that whatever I did, I would have Peter's unwavering support from here on out. From what I had gleaned from his thoughts he had a deep faith in me and what he thought I would do. I wasn't sure why he had come to that conclusion, but I speculated that he may have a power like Jasper did. He had no real loyalty to Maria; that much seemed to radiate from him. I wondered then, if he wasn't loyal to her why had he stayed here serving her? I made a decision to ask him about that later.

My sense of Jasper was tentative. I could feel his hatred of himself or at least his actions and I knew that that might be a problem. If he didn't think he deserved a shot at a different life then would he help me in the course of action I knew I would eventually take? I decided that time and hard work could help me make him understand that he deserved a second chance. In the meantime I would not put him in a position that required him to choose me over his maker.

I stopped in front of the guys and smiled. I could feel Peter's excitement grow while Jasper seemed to be contemplative. I arched an eyebrow at Jasper in response to his emotion and sent another wave of curiosity at him.

"I'm just trying to figure out your power. Maria will want to know as soon as she gets back and sees that you are awake." He answered my unspoken question. Peter stiffened and I could feel the resentment roll off him mixed in with a desire to protect.

"Peter, it's okay. It has to be done." I said, sending a wave of caution and calm to him. He relaxed a bit and then grinned.

"I know what we can tell her. We'll explain to her that she is an empath and leave it at that. If there happens to be anymore to it, we can take the time to figure it out and save it for later." Peter piped up.

His smile was mischievous and we all knew that it came from the fact that it was clear I was more than just an empath. I sensed Jasper's indecision and I knew that this decision to either hide the truth from Maria or not would be an indication of how he would react to my plans later on.

"Agreed. Isabella is an empath." Jasper's voice was firm. I looked into his eyes and sent him a wave of gratitude and friendship, hoping that this could be an opportunity for him to begin to feel differently about his existence. He seemed surprised and I wanted to know why.

_Gratitude and friendship? Could this woman, an angel and marked as such, really feel friendship towards me?_ Jasper thought.

I decided right then that I would be his friend, even if he resisted. Peter smiled at the both of us in a way that made me feel like he saw something we didn't. I was about to question him when I felt a shift in the air around us. My new hearing picked up the sounds vampires I knew that were outside shifting slightly in response a new scent.

"Maria has returned." Jasper said. Peter shot me a worried glance.

"Kitten, keep quiet!" He whispered to me and I knew that it was low enough that only Jasper and I could make it out. I nodded and wondered if he knew how I was supposed to be acting. I delved into his mind and saw flashes of images of countless newborns reacting to any and all situations. They were always vicious in their attacks of others and in a resting state they seemed to be constantly clutching their throats or releasing their rage through violence or sex. In all the images of the newborns their eyes seemed to be a bright, blood red. Peter seemed to be thinking exactly what I needed to know to pull of the plan that I was formulating in my head.

That was how I was supposed to acting? No wonder the two men before me had been shocked and awed. I decided the best course of action was to use the images I had retrieved from Peter's mind and act the part. I marveled at the way the newborns constant growling and shifting seemed to halt as the scent of Maria, sickly sweet rose and sandalwood, grew stronger. The fear and thirst emanating from outside was overwhelming me and I shielded myself instinctively from it.

I noticed Peter was fidgeting nervously, clenching and unclenching his fists and jaw. I knew that he was worried that I would be harmed by Maria if she thought I posed a threat and I desperately needed to reassure him. Maria's scent was too close to speak so I tried to tell him something in his mind, hoping it was possible. If I could pick up thoughts from them, maybe I could send some back. I crouched behind them and put my hand to my throat and willed myself to look exactly like a thirst crazed newborn, preparing for Maria's arrival. Peter and Jasper tensed at my moves but I winked at them both just as the canvas barrier was lifted. I let out a growl when I saw Maria, partly for dramatic effect and partly because I wanted to rip her fucking head off.

_I'm ok. I will be nothing but another newborn for this bitch_. I tried to send my thoughts to Peter and Jasper. It seemed to work because I felt the shock roll off them and crash into me. They composed themselves quickly and waited for Maria to speak.

"Ah, my precious Isabella turned. _Muy bueno_. Oh, I can feel her power has grown!" She clapped her hands like a demented child. I released another growl and shifted further away from her approaching form. She did not halt her movements at my warning growl and I shifted further into a crouch.

"Calm her, Major. If she attacks me _you_ will be punished." Maria's soprano voice was sharp and threatening. I could feel Jasper complying but it was unnecessary, I wouldn't allow him to be hurt because of my actions. I pretended that his manipulation had an effect and rose from my crouch, keeping one hand on my throat. Maria smiled in response to my shifted position and I controlled the urge to grab the flesh on her face and rip it off. I could feel the satisfaction and arrogance that she was emitting and I had to stop another growl that threatened to come out.

"Thirsty, _preciosa_? That burn you feel in your throat will only be alleviated after you please me. If you are good it will be quenched by the warmest, tastiest substance imaginable. Human Blood." She whispered in my ear. Her tiny hands lifted and cupped my cheek stroking it with her thumb. She was no longer cold to me but her touch sent a shiver down my spine. Her perfect lips pulled into a smirk and she released my face.

"Have you discovered what her power is?" She addressed Peter and Jasper but kept her evil red eyes on mine.

"When she awoke she sent out waves of thirst and confusion to myself and Peter. I felt it of course, but Peter reacted in away that indicates that she affected his emotions on her own. She seems to be an empath much like myself." Jasper replied. He sounded cold and dethatched.

"She won't be able to control it well for awhile, but it's promising." Peter interjected. Maria nodded and finally released me from her gaze, turning back to her second in command and newborn baby-sitter.

"She will begin training immediately. After we formally take Emilio's territory we will see about getting her a meal. I have decided to move in on that land in one week. Prepare her." Maria gave her orders and swept out of the room. The guys seemed to relax slightly at her departure and I moved my hand away from my throat and sighed.

"Isabella, your eyes are red! What did you do?" Peter asked me quietly after he had flown to my side. Jasper came toward us slowly but the questions on his face were unmistakable. He had seen me as calm and rational as an aged vampire and then saw me revert to a typical newborns behavior in a matter of seconds without actually having seen one.

"What do you mean?" I whispered back at vampire speed.

"After you turned completely your eyes were still brown. You nodded when I asked you if they had been that way when you were human, remember?" Peter continued. I remembered.

"My eyes were brown? I thought all newborns had bright red eyes?" I was confused. _I saw images in your mind about what newborns were supposed to be like, I just copied that and willed myself to look like them._ I thought to Peter. His eyes widened.

"Isabella, can you try and make them brown again?" Jasper asked me, his voice was gentle again. I closed my eyes and nodded. I pictured my mother's eyes, so like my own except for the hints of green around the irises. I opened my eyes and looked up at him. He smiled slightly and shook his head.

"You really are different Isabella." He said quietly.

"Did it work?" I asked.

"They are not blood red anymore but they are more hazel than before." Peter answered. I nodded and shut my eyes again. When I opened them I could feel that I had impressed them but Jasper was giving off a hint of disappointment. I was curious so I took a peek into his thoughts, I seemed to be getting the hang of it.

_Her eyes are back to red. She sure has beautiful eyes, no matter what color, but damn if her original brown or that hazel weren't amazing_. Jasper's thoughts drifted to my mind. I wanted to thank him, but I just looked down and tried to gather myself.

"We got a week before battle?" I asked tentatively. They both straightened up slightly and I figured this was their battle preparation posture.

"Yes. We need to get you trained and ready to go." Peter said. I nodded, ready to learn everything I could if it meant keeping myself alive.

"Teach me everything you know. I want to be the best." I replied looking at each one seriously. I sent out determination and strength and they nodded in understanding. Peter sent me a wave of understanding and I had a feeling he knew that I would take my lessons and use them for the eventual demise of our maker.

Jasper reached out to hold my hand and the contact sent a spark of electricity straight through me. I felt his shock and knew he felt it to. We locked eyes, his burgundy eyes had lost the chill they had when Maria was near and I could see various emotions shifting behind them. I was lost in them until I heard Peter clear his throat. He smirked at us and Jasper flipped him off.

"Let's go train then." Jasper's honey tone sent a shiver of anticipation down my spine and he led me by the hand he was still holding, outside to face Maria's newborn army.

**A/N- Let me know if this sucked ass or not… I don't know how I feel about this chapter, so I'd LOVE your opinions. **

**Bella will be discovering more of her powers as time goes on, but just know that the telepathy and empathy and eye color shifting are just some of her powers. If you read the first chapter you will understand that Bella was basically a genius as a human, her mind was extraordinary so it makes sense that she has more than one power as a vampire. There is a common thread in her powers, so if you figure it out, let me know, hehe. **

**Also an quick explanation: Peter knows Bella is gonna be his sister and the cause for change in their existence due to his power. Jasper does not have this so if it seems like Bella is getting closer to Peter than Jasper, don't worry it's only for right now. Bella has to work on cracking Jasper before they can be close. But as you can see he's softening up already.  
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	4. Chapter 4

**A/N- Hello all! Finals are done and I have a break from school so I should be updating more in the next couple weeks. I know where I want to take this, but some of the in-between is still sketchy. **

**I don't own any of this, too bad for me. **

**Thanks soooo much for every one of you precious people that have reviewed. It really makes my day and makes me want to write more. On with the show…**

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**Bella **

**November 1,****1927**

When we emerged from the tent I had to shield myself from the onslaught of emotions that threatened to pound me into the ground. I grasped Jasper's hand a little tighter and worked to keep calm. It seemed odd that just by smelling the air I could tell that it was a few hours from dawn. My new senses were amazing, but definitely disconcerting.

I felt Jasper sending out a strong wave of calm to the newborns that were in front of us and I allowed his power to help me as well. The newborns stopped growling but still paced in front of us clearly thirsty and agitated. I let go of Jasper and stepped towards the dozen or so newborn vampires, after all I was supposed to be just like them. I felt Peter and Jasper both tense as I moved farther from them and closer to the volatile vampires in front of me, but I did not stop my approach.

I counted thirteen newborns, in various states of dress. There were three females while the rest were male. I assumed that was intentional, males were always desirable when it comes to war. The females eyed me warily, assessing me and the possible threat I posed. The males eyed me with a different purpose, and although I had shielded myself from feeling their emotions the lust was naked in their eyes.

They were mostly of Mexican descent, and there were only a few that looked to be American. One of the females had blond hair and two of the males had bright red hair, probably brothers. I tried to read individual thoughts from the newborns closest to me, but all I got was an overwhelming sense of thirst. Their thoughts were not coherent and delving into their minds only served to ignite my own thirst. I pulled out of their minds and focused on squashing my own thirst, intent on remaining rational.

"Fall in line!" Jasper's voice sounded from behind me and before I had a chance to try and decipher his meaning the newborns snapped to attention and formed two straight lines in front of him. I fell in beside a fierce looking female and trained my eyes to Jasper's. He was pacing in front of us eyeing each of us in turn.

His eyes seemed to linger on my own a few seconds longer than the rest of the newborns and I sent him a wave of hilarity, just to see what he'd do. It was my way of messing with him and testing my limits with him. I saw a smile twitch on his lips before he sent me a wave of caution in return. He glared at me but his emotions betrayed him, they were amused and wary but not angry. I winked subtly at him but quickly straightened up ready for anything.

"We will be officially claiming new territory in a week. From now until we go into battle we will be training and doing reconnaissance of the area. If we are successful Mistress Maria has promised a feast, so if you value your strength and lives you will not disappoint. Follow my instructions and do not forget what I have taught you and you will survive and be rewarded." Jasper said his voice full of authority. I could feel him sending waves of calm and focus to the group and they seemed to respond well. Their shifting and throat grabbing had eased but I still didn't lower my shield, not wanting to be influenced by their emotions.

"We will head 50 miles to the south to train. Follow Peter and do not fall behind. Let's move out!" He commanded. Peter shot forward and started to run. If I were human I would not have seen him he was so fast. The newborns turned on their heels and began to run after him. I hesitated for a moment before shooting forward myself, amazed at my own speed. My muscles did not tire and I literally felt like I was flying I was moving so fast.

I turned my head when I noticed that Jasper seemed to bringing up the rear of the group. I spotted him running with ease and grace, I was captivated. I must have allowed him to feel my awe because he looked in my direction with a small smirk on his face. I sent him a smirk of my own before pushing my limbs harder than before, wanting to test my new boundaries. I flew past every newborn and was pushing towards Peter. I was flanking him in less than a minute and he turned his head and smiled at me. I realized that I was not breathing hard at all and my amazement turned into excitement.

Soon, Peter began to slow and I matched him until we stopped altogether. The rest of the newborns joined us after a minute and I realized that we had pulled quite a bit ahead of them. Jasper appeared suddenly and without a word two lines of newborns formed again, waiting to receive orders.

"For the benefit of our new addition, I will go over the fastest way to kill a vampire. While we are pretty indestructible, another vampire can kill you easily if you don't know how to defend yourself. Our limbs can be removed and reattached with only a scar as a reminder but if you are in pieces and burned you will not come back from that. You can decapitate a vampire and it will survive, but if you rip out its throat as well it won't be able to fuse properly." He looked towards me as he spoke and I nodded in understanding. Rip their throat out, dismember and then find a match. Got it.

I concentrated as he began to spar with Peter in demonstration. Their movements were graceful and well practiced. They seemed to be locked in an aggressive dance rather than a fight. I noticed that both of them watched the other's hips to tell them where the other was going. Blows were being dodged left and right, a few made contact and with the contact came a crash like boulders hitting each other. Soon enough they stopped and the newborns seemed to take that as a cue to split up into pairs and begin sparring on their own.

Peter and Jasper walked in between the fighting pairs and corrected or just watched each pair for a few minutes. The newborn that was in a crouch in front of me was a male about two inches taller than me, his muscles were large and he looked feral. I crouched down, waiting for his attack, knowing that it was smarter to get a feel for his fighting style rather than plunge in and attack first. He lunged at me but I dodged him easily. I whipped around readying for another attack and I wasn't disappointed. He tried to pounce on me but I dropped to the ground quickly, using my arms as anchors, I caught him mid-air and kicked him with both feet in the gut, sending him flying away from me about 30 feet. He roared in fury and ran back to me quickly. I realized he did not plan his moves, he just attacked.

Using this knowledge to my advantage I blocked his punches with ease, but was caught in the ribs suddenly with an unexpected kick. I mentally cursed myself for not watching his legs but quickly recovered and swept my foot behind his legs, causing him to fall onto his back. Before he had a chance to spring back up, I placed my knee to his abdomen and threw my weight against his shoulders pinning him down. I placed my teeth at his throat, indicating that I had won. He stopped struggling and I could sense his fear before I sprang up and away from him.

To say I was surprised at the outcome of the fight would be an understatement. While I had been human, I had learned to defend myself, but I had never felt as powerful or as lethal as I felt when my teeth were at the newborns throat. Knowing I could kill him swiftly and easily was making my new vampire mind spin with a jumble of thoughts and emotions. The newborn picked himself up and found a new sparring partner while I remained frozen.

"Izzy, are you okay?" Peter's soft voice almost made me jump. I turned to him and nodded, not knowing how or what I could say to explain my current mental state. He looked at me knowingly and shook his head.

"Don't give me that bullshit. I'm not an empath but I know that you just freaked yourself out. You are as lethal as any one of us and it scares the shit out of you doesn't it?" His question sounded almost rhetorical but I nodded anyway. His eyes softened and he brought his hand to my shoulder. I had a feeling he wanted to hug me, but was either wary of my reaction or wary of the reactions of the newborns, so he just squeezed my shoulder in comfort.

"Know this: Just because you have the power to kill, doesn't mean you are a killer. You will be fighting for real soon and in order to survive you will have to kill, but you are not a true killer until you kill for pleasure. I don't see you doing that Izzy, so don't fret too much, okay kitten?"

His words soothed me slightly, but I knew that I had some thinking to do when I got the opportunity. I sent him a wave of gratitude and refocused on my surroundings. Now was not the time to get contemplative. I needed to learn quickly and practice was the only way I was going to survive whatever was coming. I felt Peter step away from me as the blond female approached. My gut told me that she was a more cautious fighter than the male had been and thus a challenge.

We circled each other; neither of us seemed to want to make the first move. I took in her graceful steps and her petite form but did not let her size fool me. If I could take on the bulky male and win, she could take me on. I decided to end the pointless circling and threw out a kick to her ribs. She dodged and sent me a punch in retaliation. I blocked her and used her momentum to my advantage. I grabbed her fist and pulled her forward, moving out of the way of her fall. She didn't stay on the ground long. She tried to sweep my legs out from under me but I jumped up to avoid her swipe. I kicked her in the chest while in the air and she stumbled back. I landed back into a crouched position and I began to feel her anger mount, I tried not to let it affect me, but my clear mind began to cloud with her emotions.

Our moves became less precise and more instinct driven, resulting in sloppy fighting and feral snaps at each other. I tried to shut myself off from feeling her emotions but the haze of anger was making it near impossible as I fought to keep the upper hand. I landed a solid punch to her jaw and sent her flying back, colliding with another sparring pair. The pair didn't take kindly to being knocked over and I suddenly found myself staring down three newborns intent on ripping me to pieces. Their predatory approach allowed me the time I needed to successfully block off their emotions and my mind instantly cleared.

They circled me and I tried to predict what their moves would be. The female and one of the males sprang forward in a blink of an eye and I twisted out of the way, narrowly missing them. The third male took the opportunity to kick me in my stomach and I doubled over for a moment before returning a roundhouse kick to his head. The female jumped on my back, her hands grasping painfully at me neck. I threw her over my shoulder with as much force as I could and she flew into one of the males. They fell into a pile on the ground and I wasted no time and pounced, grabbing onto a limb of each. I pulled with all of my might and was rewarded with a metal keening sound and a sickening pop. I threw an arm and a leg away from me and tried to ignore the angry and pained screams from the male and female on the floor. The male that remained grabbed my arm as I threw a punch and began to pull.

The pain came fast and hard and it took all of my concentration to not scream and lose my head. I lifted my knee as hard as I could to his groin and he let go of my arm and crumpled to the floor. That was probably a dirty trick, but I really didn't feel like losing an arm. I noticed the other newborns had stopped sparring and had been watching our fight intently. A couple looked like they were ready to spring on me but a sudden wave of calm stilled them. The female had grabbed her arm and was holding in place and the male was doing the same with his leg. I guess it was fusing back together.

I stepped away from them and looked around warily, unsure of what to do next. Jasper and Peter approached us slowly, faces unreadable.

I opened myself up to feel their emotions and theirs only and was surprised that there was no anger. Peter felt pride and hope while Jasper felt pride, shock and contemplation.

"What was that about Isabella?" Jasper asked quietly. His tone was authoritative and I couldn't help but answer with a military like tone.

"The female and I were engaged in a fight. I knocked her into the two males that were sparring and they all came to attack me at once. I fought them all and dismembered two and finished the third with a knee to the groin." I saw Peter wince at my last words and Jasper nodded. Our voices were low and meant for each other only.

"Impressive, Isabella. The knee to the groin may have been excessive, but you took on three vampires and won. We don't usually spar outside of pairs but maybe we should start." He seemed to be in thought.

"Jasper, in battle do fights generally stay one on one?" I asked.

"It depends on the oppositions numbers, but they usually are one on one in the beginning and more often than not it will end up two on one." He replied. I raised an eyebrow at him.

"And you never practiced that way? Two or three on one?" I asked incredulously. He shook his head.

"When a group attacks an individual it's usually a swift death for the solo fighter. Our numbers are usually even with our enemies, so group attacks are minimal. I see where you're going with this. We could train this way and increase our fighter's skills in that situation." Jasper replied. He looked at me with a new respect and I swear I felt heat rise to my cheeks. I was glad that I could help him find new ways to train us even if it meant me getting ambushed by three furious newborns. I suddenly felt a stinging pain on my forearm and looked down.

A crescent shaped bite mark was oozing a clear liquid on my left forearm. I touched it gingerly and as my fingers made contact the pain increased. I winced and sent a wave of confusion to Jasper.

"You must have been bitten while you were fighting the female. I saw that she was affecting your emotions, you must not have felt it. The only thing that can penetrate our skin is our teeth. The clear liquid coming out is a mixture of your own venom and the venom of the vampire that bit you. That bite will scar." He brought his own fingertips to my bite mark and sent a soothing wave towards me. His face looked pained and I wanted to know if I was projecting my pain to him so I delved into his mind.

_Her first scar. Soon she will be littered with them like I am. She doesn't deserve to be marked like that_. Jaspers thoughts had a sad tinge to them and I immediately sent out a wave of calm and affection.

"I always liked scars. They tell a story and damn if I don't think they are sexy as hell." I winked at him. His surprise nearly made me laugh and I just had to know what he was thinking.

_Sexy as hell? Mine may not be sexy but I bet hers will be…_ He thought.

I grinned up at him and traced a scar on his forearm as he was tracing mine. I liked the constant thrum of electricity that flowed between us as we touched and I wished it could continue. Alas, behind us a fight broke out and our attentions were diverted back to the business at hand of training.

Peter broke up the fight and we fell in line again. Jasper used his gift to help the group focus and understand his orders. He explained that we would be working on a group attack. He had three newborns attack him while the rest of us watched.

I watched closely at each of his moves. He was precise and deliberate in each motion, seeming to have come up with a strategy in seconds and executing it to perfection. The three newborns tried in vain to catch him unaware and as they fought he disabled each newborn methodically. After a newborn was disabled or out of the fight (which occurred if Jasper got his teeth to their throat) a new vampire would take his place.

I grew anxious, awaiting my turn. There were about three more vampires ahead of me, waiting to jump in the fray when I smelled dawn approaching. I turned to Peter and spoke quietly but urgently to him.

"The sun is coming! Don't we have to be inside?!" He merely chuckled.

"Those are myths Izzy. We don't burn in the sun and we don't sleep in coffins or turn into bats. We have reflections and photographs can be taken of us. Garlic is gross but it won't do a damn thing to us and crosses are pretty and wont burn our flesh."

"So we can be in the sun and nothing happens?" I asked, confused.

"Oh no, something happens all right. We don't burn but we can't be in direct sunlight around humans because they would know that we are not human." He replied, grin still in place.

"What happens? And if we don't sleep in coffins, do we sleep in the ground?"

"You'll see what happens in a few minutes. We can't sleep at all, kitten. Think about it. You've fought four vampires in the last few hours. Do you feel tired?"

I thought about it and realized I felt as perky and refreshed as I would have after a restful night of sleep. The idea that we couldn't sleep was odd. I had liked to sleep. My dreams were always strange but they were either funny or full of images of my mother. My dreams had been my escape from reality, my only opportunity to interact with the people I had loved and lost.

I was sad for a moment before I realized that I was up next to jump in the fight against Jasper. With a second of hesitation I flew into the fray, catching Jasper in the side with a kick as he disabled a newborn. It was a long haired male and I against our Major. After he recovered from the blow I landed he shifted to face us. I looked for an opening in his defenses, waiting for the long haired male to attack so I could take advantage of Jasper's distraction. Amazingly, Jasper never let his defenses drop, not even while the male attacked. I decided to attack anyway, hoping to land at least one blow.

I threw a right hook at his jaw, only to have my fist caught in his own. I brought my left leg up kick him and he automatically dropped my fist and blocked the kick. I jumped back in order to give myself a fighting chance against him and he brought his teeth to the male's neck. It was now Jasper against me. The newborns behind us were watching intently, growling every so often. I could feel Peter's eye boring into us and I could see that he had his arms crossed over his chest with a smug grin on his face.

We were circling each other, trying to glean information from each other by studying the way the other moved. I feinted to the left and he didn't fall for it. He did the same and I didn't twitch a muscle. Inspiration hit me and a devious smirk grew on my face. I opened myself up to him and felt his confusion. I sent a tidal wave of lethargy and I saw his eye drop half an inch. I sprung at him before he could fight it off and pinned him to the ground for a split second before he threw me over him and jumped back up.

"So you wanna play with powers, Isabella?" He smirked at me. I felt a sudden onslaught of lust. I was scared to move for fear that I would jump on the nearest male. I fought the lust off myself and reflected it back to Jasper as quickly as I could. I saw his eyes darken from their liquid ruby to a startling onyx in a flash. He stalked towards me in a wholly new manner than before. I saw him slow himself down and take in a shuddering gasp before he reached me, seemingly trying to shake off the lust I had sent him. I used his hesitation to my advantage and I jumped into the air and flipped over his head like an acrobat. I landed directly behind him and before he could fully turn around I grabbed his shoulders and twisted so his throat came in contact with my mouth. Instead of letting my teeth announce my victory, I placed a gentle kiss to his adam's apple and pulled away.

He looked shocked as he turned to face me.

_Did she just kiss my throat?_ His thought came unbidden to my mind.

My face must have mirrored his surprise and awe, because in that moment I felt the air leave my lungs. The first rays of the morning sun danced across Jasper's face, lighting him up in a way that I hadn't expected. His skin seemed to shimmer and sparkle, like there was diamond dust coating every inch of him. The scars that littered his exposed flesh seemed to be a toned down glittering version of the unmarred flesh, and it brought to light just how many scars he had.

He was the single most beautiful thing I had ever seen in my entire life. I knew in that moment that my eyes would never land on anything as beautiful as him no matter how many centuries I lived. I smiled at his still stunned face and a wave of hilarity threatened to overtake me.

I accidentally sent my amusement to him and he scowled, probably thinking I was laughing at him. I suppressed my laughs and whispered for his ears only.

"We fucking sparkle? Immortal creatures, predators of the most dangerous kind and we glitter like the party girls at the local speakeasy?"

He sent me a wave of understanding and his own amusement showed as his lips fought a rising grin.

"That we do. I never really thought about how much of an oxymoron it is." His voice wasn't the cold 'Major' voice he'd been using. I liked this warm, easygoing voice. I grinned at him. I heard Peter approaching and I let my eyes drift over to him. He too sparkled in a fantastic manner, but he didn't hold the same appeal that Jasper did and I wondered why.

"You beat our Major, Izzy. Congratulations. What was that flippy thing you just did?" Peter asked; the awe and pride in his voice made me want to blush. I looked down in embarrassment and mumbled my reply, knowing they would hear it.

"When I was young my mother would take me every summer to her parent's house outside of Houston. They had a farm and I would spend my days tumbling around doing the gymnastic techniques I had read about in books. I used trees to learn how to twist and land from a heightened position. It's not that big of a feat." I chanced a look at them and they seemed to be communicating silently using facial expressions. Jasper had one perfect eyebrow raised and I saw Peter shrug and smile. Jasper nodded and Peter grinned in response.

"You seem to be giving me a lot of new ideas to help make us stronger Isabella. I think using gymnastics in that way can be beneficial in a fight." Jasper said to me after a moment. A thought suddenly struck me. If we could use gymnastics in a fight, perhaps it was better if we used it against Maria when the time came. It could be an advantage that only Peter, Jasper and I had.

"I suppose you're right. How about I teach you and Peter all I know about it and later we can teach the rest?" I propositioned. I sent Peter a quick look and a mental message.

_Using gymnastics in fighting should be saved for just us. We will need __**any**__ advantage we have against Maria when the time comes. Help me convince Jasper not to incorporate it right now!_ Peter sent a wave of understanding to me.

"I think that's a good idea. After Jasper and I get the hang of it we can teach the newborns because they won't listen to you right now, Izzy." Peter spoke up. Jasper nodded his head and I tried to keep the relief off my face.

"You're right, Peter. Do you mind teaching us what you know when we get a chance?" Jasper asked me politely. I smiled and nodded.

"Of course I will. It's really not difficult." I said humbly.

We turned back to the newborns, breaking the huddle we had been in. Two lines had once again formed and I fell in with the back line. Jasper split everyone into groups of four or five and the group fighting began again. It took a long while for the individual fighter to be able to disable all of his attackers but after three days of nonstop group fighting every single newborn was able to take on at least three attackers with relative ease.

Finally, after the last newborn accomplished the task Jasper let us have 'free time' for a bit. I watched as a few males scattered and returned with dried desert brush and pieces of wood and built a fire. The blond female I had fought on the first day slid towards a couple of males eyeing them with obvious lust. I saw the males begin to shove each other in an attempt to get to the blonds' side first.

Another female had gone straight to the nearest male and pulled him behind her in search of a location to have sex. I shook my head in wonder and made sure to close off my ability to feel their emotions. I began to walk away from where the newborns had converged in hopes of being alone with my thoughts. The desert floor beneath my bare feet felt soft as I padded further from the entrancing fire. I stopped walking and stretched out on the still warm ground about a half mile away from our make-shift camp. The stars were bright and I sighed at the sheer beauty of it.

I closed my eyes and kept the image of the stars in my mind as I pretended to sleep. I would not dream, but a peaceful meditation with nothing but the heavens on my mind seemed to be as close as I was going to get. I was so entranced in my mind that I didn't notice the scents of Peter and Jasper until they were next to me, one on each side. I suppressed an instinctive jump from being startled and just continued to lay there. I opened myself up to their emotions and basked in the calm and affection that poured from Peter and the curiosity and awe that came from Jasper. I felt them sit down and I sighed, raising myself up to sit with them.

"What can I do for you gentlemen?" I asked sweetly. Peter grinned at me and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. I smacked him playfully on the back of his head and laughed.

"Just kidding, Izzy. Well, you promised to tell us all about your bootlegging remember?" Peter said. I rolled my eyes but sighed in defeat.

"Ugh. It's really not all that interesting. I was a bootlegger. The end." I said. Peter scoffed and Jasper's eyebrow rose. I looked away from them both and lay back down. They followed me and we all just watched the sky for a few moments. If I expected them to trust me and eventually help me, I needed to be honest about what made me tick. I cleared my throat unnecessarily.

"Story time for my vampire boys? Questions and or comments will be reserved for after I have finished my tale, if you don't mind. To understand why I became a bootlegger I have to start from the very beginning, so settle in and hold your tongue. That means you Peter!" I joked. Peter nodded eagerly and Jasper sent me a wave of acceptance and curiosity.

I told them about my human family with as much detail as I could muster. I described how much I loved my family and how my parents were before my father became a politician. I explained how my father began to change, while my mother had remained as big hearted as ever. Peter had reached out and taken my hand early on in my story and it comforted me greatly. When Jasper entwined his fingers with my own as I told them of my mother's passing and the years of loneliness following them I sent him a wave of gratitude and affection. He sent me his own affection when I described my anger at my father after I discovered his involvement in freedom stripping.

"So I came up with my alter ego, Freya Jameson. I liked the name Freya because it's unusual and it's also a Nordic goddess of war, love, wisdom, beauty and magic and it just seemed right. Jameson came from the crates of Jameson Whiskey that my father stocked up on. I found it ironic." I laughed at their snorts of amusement.

"I made up a fiancée, Mr. Daniels. Jack Daniels if anyone had cared to ask. Mr. Daniels afforded me the opportunity to create this operation with no questions asked. I used the money I had to cultivate contacts and I prowled around speakeasies for 'unfavorable' folk, if you will. I learned to blend in anywhere, from shady ports to illegal booze parties. I gathered men with the help of my second in command, Johnny McCormick. Johnny and I went to all the southern states that we knew were unclaimed or disorganized and set up our territory quickly. From there we took in the shipments of liquor at a port in Mexico and ran them through to their destinations with rarely a problem. I paid my men well and they were for the most part, loyal. I took my cut and set aside 10 percent to be used to overturn the Eighteenth Amendment while the rest went to charities and hospitals in Texas." I finished. It was quiet for a few minutes.

"Wow." Peter broke the silence. I laughed in embarrassment. My life wasn't that interesting. The way I saw it, I did what needed to be done. I didn't need glory or awe.

"It's not a big deal. Gangsters up and down the eastern seaboard are doing it for their own reasons with no problem." I said.

"Yes, but they do it for greed. They want the money and the power. You wanted to fight for freedom and you gave most of the money away. That is amazing." Jasper finished softly.

"So you never mentioned a _real_ beau in your story, Izzy. Care to elaborate?" Peter chimed in amusement thick in his voice. I dropped his hand and glared at him. He grinned in response as usual.

"I didn't mention one because there were none. I was pretty busy running liquor from Texas all the way through to Florida, a lover wasn't exactly in my timetable." I whispered harshly. He laughed at my reaction. Jasper seemed to be deep in thought and I snuck a peek in his mind.

_Never had a boyfriend or lover? She's too beautiful for that to be possible, but her emotions aren't indicating that she lied. I wonder why she never had someone_. He thought.

"Look, before I started bootlegging I was busy with school and my philanthropy. Afterwards I was busy running my operation. The men I came in contact with were shady and generally not good people so I never felt any attraction towards them. It's not complicated really." I inadvertently answered Jasper's thoughts. I cringed, waiting for him to understand what I had just done, but he seemed to be thinking hard about my answer. Relief washed through me. I wasn't sure how Jasper would react if I told him I could read his mind, it was best to keep the extent of my abilities to a minimum for now.

My story must have taken longer than I realized as I noticed the sky lightening slowly. I squeezed Jasper's hand pulling him away from his thoughts.

"Just so you two know, my story came with a price. Next time we take a break it's your turn to share. Got it?" I told them both. They smiled and nodded their acceptance and I relaxed and closed my eyes.

I wanted to enjoy the silence and the company for as long as I could. While I had blocked the emotions of the newborns for the most part during the group fighting, many times I had been subjected to their thirst, rage and hate. I needed this time to regroup and focus my mind and emotions on something positive. I sent out wave after wave of my own calm and affection to Jasper and Peter and they responded by relaxing and sending it back to me. It was like our own bubble of goodness. I knew when the sun came up our bubble would burst so I let the warming emotions flow and crash into me.

When I felt the first rays of dawn touch my face I sighed and squeezed Jasper's hand. I reluctantly let it go and gathered myself up and stood up. Peter noticed my reluctance to return to training and he slung his arm around my shoulder in a brotherly gesture of comfort. I smiled up at him and grabbed Jasper's hand so we could begin the short trek back to the rest of the newborns. The electricity never lessened between Jasper and I, and I marveled at it. I could sense the same dazed wonder seeping from Jasper and I suppressed a smile. At least he felt it too.

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**A/N- Let me know what you think. Review and I will love you forever and write faster! **


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N- So I don't own Twilight. Just throwing that out there…**

**Thank you all so very much for the reviews and alerts and all that jazz….Please continue to review, it warms my cold dead heart.**

**Big shout out to Jasperbells: My first Fanfic friend, your reviews and encouragement make me smile. Thank you! (I can't forget Sarah either…thanks)**

**What I'm reading and what I will pimp out to you all: ****Awaken To Serve**** by Jasperbells… GO CHECK IT OUT! Trust me when I say I'm a picky reader and I can honestly say I love this story. It's original and so very good… **

**Let's do this!**

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**Jasper**

"Bad shit is coming our way, man." Peter's tone matched his emotions; wary and a bit fearful. I lifted an eyebrow in his direction but quickly turned my gaze to back to the newborns that were 'resting' after four days of almost non-stop training.

"I have a bad feeling about the battle. I know you did the recon and checked out Emilio's status, but I have a fucked up feeling that we're missing something. Something big. " Peter explained. I nodded in understanding and wracked my brains trying to figure out if I missed anything when I had skirted Emilio's territory trying to gauge his numbers and skill level.

There had been at least 20 newborns all about two months old. They had shown no special skills or strength in fighting when I had observed them from a position down wind. It all seemed legitimate and predictable so I had been confident that we would win and officially claim the territory. But Peter had never been wrong before and now I was uneasy.

"Can you pinpoint what's gonna happen?" I asked him. I could feel his irritation.

"If I could fucking do that, I would. I'm not a fuckin' gypsy fortune teller. All I know is that the battle is gonna be a clusterfuck." Peter growled out. I sent a wave of calm and he visibly relaxed. Peter always got mad when I tried to get details out of him that he couldn't provide. Sometimes he had them, sometimes he didn't; when he didn't he would get pissed at his 'gift' and essentially himself and take it out on me if I pried.

"We're as prepared as we're gonna get. Maria wants to move in on that territory at sundown, what can we do?" I tried to soothe him. He was agitated and it was rubbing off on me. I caught him gazing at Isabella, worry etched on his face. I followed the path of his gaze until I was watching her too.

We hadn't had an opportunity to just relax after the night she told us her story, and a part of me was confused at how sad that made me. We had taken shorter breaks after that night and every time we did she was distant. At first she still sat with Peter and I but she kept her emotions inside and barely spoke. The last few breaks we had she had stayed away altogether, sitting close to the fire and gazing at it or watching the sky. I couldn't for the life of me figure it out.

"I'm worried about Izzy." Peter interrupted my musings.

"She's actually the best fighter we have now. She has a power on her side and she's smart. I think she will do okay." I tried to reassure him. Peter shook his head.

"That's not what I meant, but if you wanna talk about her fighting skill, let's talk. The last two days her fighting has been getting sloppy. It's like that time she fought the blonde; I think she is starting to become more susceptible to the other's emotions." Peter said. I had noticed that little fact, but I had figured that since she was doing well regardless it would be okay. I had never been worried about an individual newborn before, and I wasn't ready to admit that I was worried as fuck for Isabella.

"She's still one of the best." I reaffirmed. Peter sighed and continued to watch Isabella sitting cross-legged off to the side with her eyes closed. Her face had a slight grimace of pain.

"Ya, she sure is." Peter's smile faded as he continued. "She's gonna need us in the next few days. Especially after the fight. I've seen Maria throw her some twisted fucking looks and that can only mean that she's gonna fuck with Izzy."

I had to clamp down a growl that threatened to slip past my lips. I had seen the way Maria fucked with her soldiers and it was never pretty. It was usually so cruel and sadistic that I had been forced to kill the newborn because they would go after Maria in vengeance. I didn't know what would happen if Isabella went after Maria, I didn't know who I would kill. Maria had been absent the last two days and had informed me that I was to claim the territory in her name regardless if she was present or not. She still hadn't shown up and I knew that meant we would go into battle without our 'Mistress'.

I was snapped out of my thoughts again when Peter moved away from me suddenly. He set a course for the spot Isabella was currently in and I began to follow him slowly. He reached her side and sat down next to her quietly. She didn't acknowledge his presence. I crept closer and when I reached them I took a position in front of them. Still no response from her.

"Izzy?" Peter whispered softly to her. She didn't twitch. I was reminded of her brave stoicism during her change. I felt a sudden drop in temperature and realized the sun had just sunk behind the horizon. It was time to move out.

"Isabella." My voice was my own, not the voice I used when commanding the newborns. Her eyes snapped open and locked on mine. I still couldn't feel anything from her but I could see the pain and confusion in her bright red eyes.

"It's time to go. We will fight tonight. You need to keep safe. Stay near Peter or myself and if you get into trouble call us. Understood?" I put as much authority into my voice as I could while looking at her beautiful eyes. I always felt lost while looking at her, like I was missing something and she was the answer. Now was not the time to analyze that thought.

I saw her nod ever so slightly and I detected a hint of anger at my words. She stood fluidly and stared up at me, her body stiff. I sent her a wave of calm and affection, in hopes of sparking anything resembling the woman who had first introduced me to the latter of those emotions. I was rewarded when her gaze softened slightly and she put her hand on my neck. I felt her voice ghost over my mind, though her lips didn't move.

_I will be fine, Jasper. Please stay safe yourself. I'll watch your back. Peter and I need you, so listen to him and his bad feeling and be even more alert than you usually are, warlord. _

I felt the loss of her hand when she slowly removed it. She tore her gaze away from mine and I could almost physically feel her gathering herself up emotionally. She turned away from me and sent Peter a look and a mental message, as I felt him send a wave of understanding to her. I sent a silent plea to the heavens that everything would be okay. She needed me.

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**Bella**

_I have your back Peter, please make sure to watch Jasper's. I think your feeling has to do with him. Don't worry about me too much, you'll get distracted._ I mentally told Peter. He sent me a wave of understanding that I barely felt. I turned back to Jasper and watched as he gathered the troops to head out. We began to run southeast as stealthily as we could.

I tried to get a handle on my emotions and shield myself from the others. I had been finding that task increasingly difficult the past few days. It was an odd sensation to be _drained_ but not _tired_. I knew I could fight for weeks without consequence but the agonizing burn in my throat had been growing and with its growth my control over myself and my powers had been shrinking.

It began small; the newborn that I would be fighting would rile me up before I realized my shield was down. Then my shield just felt weaker, and strong emotions began to get through more easily. I would hear snippets of Peter or Jasper's thoughts and the newborns thirst began to compound my own. I felt like if I moved or spoke too much I was going to snap. So I reined myself in, keeping my mouth shut and my thoughts on anything but my thirst or the emotions that were bombarding me.

I could feel pricks of apprehension coming from Peter and his thoughts told me that he felt something to be off about our impending fight. I knew enough about his gift that I took it seriously. I had also been feeling especially anxious about the fight, but I had figured it was because it was my first one. I felt stupid for trying to justify the feeling and I realized that I needed to always trust my instincts, as I had done as a human.

I came out of my jumbled thoughts as our army slowed and began to fan out in a tactical formation. I stuck near Jasper and Peter and tried to shut myself off from the emotions poring from my comrades and the hidden opposition. I could tell it was working to a certain extent, but the side effect was unsettling. I began to hear the whispers of our enemies thoughts in my mind.

_The …. Go for….. bl-…..Him……destroy…. –de…_

Before I could decipher the incoherent thoughts of the enemy, they were upon us. I swiftly calculated their numbers and realized they had only a handful more than us. I sensed an approaching attacker and faced an Amazon like female. She was thick and tall, her eyes wild and her hair untamed and flying about her face in a frightening way.

She sprang at me before I could even prepare to meet her blow. Her feral snarls sent my mind into a near panic. I could see various fights taking place around me and after spotting Jasper and Peter locked in their own fights and doing well I gathered my wits and sent a tidal wave of lethargy to the wild woman that was snapping her jaws at my throat. Her snapping ceased and I took the opportunity to flip our positions so that I straddled her stomach and before she could fight of my wave I had her throat locked between my teeth and tore it away from her head with a sick keening sound. I tore her head away from her body and then set about tearing the rest of her limbs off and throwing them away from me.

I stood and crouched down, ready for the next challenger when I heard the thoughts again, more distinct. It was like a sick mantra that made me stop cold.

_The blond. Go for the blond. Destroy him. Destroy the blond._

I looked around wildly for the source of these thoughts. Every newborn on our side was fighting and winning against the opposition. Peter was assisting a newborn with two enemies and Jasper was fighting fiercely with a giant of a man. It seemed to me that I saw it in slow motion; one minute things were going well for our side and the next it went to hell.

As if appearing from thin air a row of fresh newborns flew towards Jasper and every newborn on our side was occupied. Suddenly the thoughts I had picked up on made sense. They were going for Jasper; he was their sole target.

I choked back a scream and flew towards Jasper while sending Peter a message that Jasper was going to get ambushed. The secret contingent of enemy newborns numbered at least ten, but that intimidating number did nothing to deter me from attacking.

Jasper had finished of the huge newborn he had been fighting and I knew that the pieces had fallen into place for him. He was a step behind me as we reached the newborns sent to kill him. I sprung up and over the wall of newborns and quickly reached out to the nearest threat to Jasper and tore his throat out with the claws that were my fingers. Twisting his head clean off his shoulders I reached for the next one quickly. I had two on me before I could blink and I sent out as much pain and confusion as I could, hoping to distract them so I could finish them off and help Jasper with the four he was taking on.

The newborns continued to try and get a firm grip on any limb they could as if my emotional attack had no effect. I felt one bite my rib, taking a chunk of my shirt with him. I wrenched away from him and used my own teeth to tear his arm off. The fight continued and after destroying the one that bit me I noticed the other one had moved from me onto Jasper. He was surrounded and I could see Peter trying to throw newborns away from Jasper, but for ever newborn he threw another would return.

My anger and desperation was mounting quickly and I let out a scream. I charged at the group and fought my way through, my mind focused on saving Jasper from the single-minded newborns. My only thoughts were of reaching Jasper and keeping him safe. I made it to the middle of the blood thirsty huddle and I saw Jasper fighting as methodically as ever, avoiding teeth and ripping limbs. His skill was apparent, but it wasn't enough in the face of almost a dozen newborns focused solely on him.

I could smell his venom rising to the surface of his latest bite marks and I suddenly lost it. All the pain, anger and fear I held inside finally consumed me and a feral growl ripped through my throat as I ripped away one of the fuckers that was hurting my Jasper. My growl stilled some of the newborns that were on the outskirts of the attack on Jasper and they fearfully looked at me.

I felt their hesitation for a split second before they were overcome and attacked again in earnest. I couldn't take it anymore! I stepped in front of an attacking male, blocking Jasper from his glinting teeth. I felt his teeth sink into the edge of my left shoulder and I shook him loose quickly. More and more newborns jumped on me, trying to get to Jasper. I knew that Jasper was occupied in the fight and had not noticed me jumping in front of him.

My frustration was mounting. As soon as I sent one flying, two more would be upon me. I turned my head a fraction and from the corner of my eye I saw a bulky newborn bringing Jasper's throat to his mouth. It was as if something snapped inside me, leaving only a powerful current of anger behind. I lifted my arms above my head and the newborns within a five foot radius of me were thrown thirty feet away as if yanked backed by and invisible rope. I took no notice of this development and I launched myself at the bulky motherfucker that was a second away from killing my Jasper.

I tackled him from the side and before he could understand what happened, he was dismembered and I was spitting his throat out of my mouth. I stood and I could feel the fear from the newborns that had been blasted back from me. They stalked forward again hesitantly, but this time our own ranks were less occupied and therefore created a wall in front of Jasper and I. Our newborns were lethal and there was a growing pile of limbs in a matter of minutes. If an enemy newborn got too close, the anger welled inside me and before they could pounce they were thrown back. Soon the every enemy newborn was dismembered and the sickly sweet smell of burning vampire flesh hit my nose.

I could see our remaining ranks circling the funeral pyre; purple smoke rising in beautiful swirls above their heads. I remained frozen, unable to break out of the angry haze in my mind. I still smelled Jasper's venom, trickling out of his wounds and it didn't help my peace of mind. I felt rather than saw Peter next to me and I could smell his injuries as well. I tensed and tried in vain to clamp down on my animalistic urge to leap into the fire and rip the vampire parts into smaller pieces.

I could hear Peter trying to calm me, but I was too far gone to make sense of the words that were being whispered to me in his comforting tone. I slammed my eyelids shut and sat down, curling into myself in an attempt to lock it all away. I felt like I was going crazy. The thirst reignited and it was all I could do to not scream out in agony. My usual trick of focusing on other things was not helping, I was still consumed. Suddenly a spark erupted in my body and I focused on it. I could feel electricity humming from a spot on my back as it moved in repetitive circles. I was confused at first but I felt an overwhelming calm seep from the electric touch and I soon realized Jasper was rubbing my back and sending me calming waves. My heart almost burst with the appreciation, affection and relief I was feeling for him. I could tell he felt my dizzying emotions because his hand stilled for a split second before resuming its comforting course.

I was relieved that Jasper and Peter were okay. I was grateful that Jasper was helping me find my sanity again and the affection that I had for them both was overwhelming. They were everything to me now, and I would die to keep them safe. I could feel my body slowly uncurl from its protective posture and the thirst I had been drowning in receded ever so slightly. My mind was able to make sense of the words that were flowing from them to me.

"It's okay, Iz, we've got you." Peter was stroking hand. I squeezed lightly and the relief he felt was transferred to me. My shield had been getting weaker and the fight only served to weaken it further.

"Isabella, what were you thinking jumping in front of me like that?!" Jasper's voice was soft but reproachful. So he had noticed my little shielding action. Damn. "You could have gotten yourself ripped to shreds! If it hadn't been for that display of telekinesis, you would be in pieces."

Huh. So that was the reason the newborns had flown away from me?

"Who is telekinetic?" I whispered, confused. I saw the guys exchange an incredulous glance.

"You." Jasper replied. I stared in disbelief.

"I saw it, kitten. You lifted up your arms and suddenly it was raining newborns as they fell from the sky away from you and Jasper. That was some amazing shit, Iz." Peter winked. I shook my head in denial; no way I did that.

"I felt some of the most intense feelings of anger I have ever felt when you threw them away from us. That power is definitely tied to your emotions, which is why I think we didn't know about it before. I've never felt you get that angry before." Jasper mused.

"They were after you. I read their minds. That secret contingent kept repeating in their minds that they had to destroy you. I don't know why you were their target, but when I heard their thoughts I fucking lost it." I explained. Jasper's hand froze on my back. I was confused for a moment, until I realized my mistake. Fuck.

"You heard their thoughts?" He asked me. Peter squeezed my hand I knew he was telling me it was time to come clean about the extent of my abilities. I took a deep breath and caught Jasper's eye and nodded.

"I can hear thoughts if I want to. I just have to think about wanting to know what someone is thinking and I can hear them. You already know I can send my thoughts and feel others emotions as well as influence them. You know I can shield myself and I guess now I can move shit with my mind. Just so you know, I haven't been listening in on your every thought. I only use that gift when it's important. Lately though, I feel like an invisible wall is crumbling and I hear more and feel more that I want or intended. That's how I heard the newborns plan against you." I looked away, afraid of his reaction.

With my weakened shield I could feel his conflicting emotions; shock, anger, curiosity, amazement, embarrassment, pride and finally affection. His hand resumed its circular path on my back and I chanced a look at him. He had a half-smile on his face that made a smile of my own appear on my lips.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you before, Jazz. I didn't want to put you in a bad position with our evil fucking 'Mistress'." I told him quietly, sending my sincerity and regret to him. He nodded, a hint of amusement in his eyes. I sent a wave of curiosity to him. He smirked at me.

"Jazz?" He asked simply. I would have flushed with embarrassment if I were human. I looked down, trying to stifle that wave of emotion from reaching him. I wasn't successful however and he felt it. He placed a hand on my neck and I instinctively looked up.

"Don't worry, darlin'. I like it." His accent made his words more sensual than I could handle. I stifled the spike of lust I felt before he could feel it and I knew this time I was successful. Peter cleared his throat and chuckled, interrupting my eye-fucking of Jasper. I glanced at him, annoyed.

"Emilio clearly wanted Jasper down for the count. He knows that the reason Maria is so successful is because of Jasper's power to control and instruct the newborns with his gift. I'm sure that is why he was the main target tonight. Good thing you ripped his throat out, Izzy " Peter's words made sense and I growled in response. Emilio must have been the bulky fucker that almost killed Jasper before I tackled him. I felt Jasper's surprise at my reaction and without warning his thoughts appeared in my mind before I could shut it out.

_She's __**that **__fucking protective of me? No one besides Peter has been that way with me, and even he doesn't throw out the intensity of it like she does. Amazing that an angel like her wants me to be safe. Fuck, I'm lost. _

I shook my head quickly, not wanting to hear anymore and invade his thoughts. I didn't have time to dwell on what I heard because the newborns had finished throwing any and all limbs into the fire and were growling impatiently.

"Time to go back to camp." Jasper muttered. He slid his hand down my back and hooked his arm around my waist, helping me to my feet. I reluctantly stepped away from him, afraid to lose the calming emotions that he was giving me. The calm lessened but didn't dissipate completely and I was grateful. We began to run quickly back to our base camp, the night air whipping past us and whistling in our ears.

I could see the large bonfire that lit up our tents and as we got closer I could smell something tantalizing. The calm that I had been reveling in disappeared and was replaced with my raging thirst once again. The newborns in front of me seemed to fly in their haste to reach camp. They obviously smelled it too. I struggled with my rationality and tried to remind myself of my vow to not drink from an innocent human. My body reacted by slowing down, but not stopping.

I reached camp faster than I wanted and I stilled my body and locked my muscles in hope of resisting the tempting smell that was emanating from Maria's tent. I suppressed a growl as she emerged from her tent, and evil smirk plastered on her beautiful features.

"I see our campaign was successful. Well done. In reward for our recent accomplishment, I have arranged for a feast." Maria's sharp bell voice cut through the hungry growls and all fell silent. Unease gnawed at me as Maria's eyes lingered on my own. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the tent flap lift and a procession of men and women exited, their terror paralyzing me.

I saw Maria grab a tall, burly man and walk towards me slowly. I saw the newborns pounce on the humans that were left behind, the sounds of blood spurting and being sucked greedily made me simultaneously sick and hungry. Maria stopped before me and I looked at the man that she had dragged with her.

Fuck no. His hair was slicked back, but wasn't in its usual order. His dark eyes were in shock as they drank me in.

"Freya?" He croaked out, fear making his voice waver and crack. No…no… NO!!

"Johnny." I replied. Johnny fucking McCormick stood cowering in front of me. I could smell his fear, and it perversely intensified my already consuming thirst.

"Isabella, I brought you a treat." Maria said simply. I found my limbs refused to be locked, but to my relief they were taking me away from Johnny in small steps. I looked behind them and noticed for the first time that the humans that were being used to quench my comrades thirst were none other than my _entire_ crew, as well as random townspeople.

"No!" I screamed at Maria. She let out a cackle of glee, enjoying my pain and anger. My mind was screaming at me and I knew I had sent my thoughts to Peter and Jasper unconsciously.

_No… No!! Not fucking them! No! Johnny, Otto, Stan, Leroy, Donny, Frankie, Carl, Jack, Bill, Randy, Mark... My entire crew. Dead. Fuck no! Please, no. __**Please, God, NO! **_

I continued to move away from Johnny, my friend, my second in command. I fought every urge I had to drain him, I fought the urge to behead Maria for torturing me like this. I fought with everything I had. But it wasn't enough. My steps slowed and stilled. Maria grinned wickedly at me and brought her fingernail to Johnny's throat and slid it across his pulsing jugular.

I was lost. My mind continued to scream at me in a loop of denial, pain and thirst. Johnny's cry of pain and the subsequent smell of fresh blood pouring from his throat overtook me. I sprang forward and attached my lips to his throat. I pulled in the sweet nectar and I sent a wave of ecstasy I was feeling to Johnny. I felt his fear dissipate and it was replaced with acceptance, forgiveness and love. I wanted to stop drinking from him but I couldn't. My mind was screaming at me to stop but my body was not responding. I felt the life drain from him slowly as his precious blood filled me and soothed my flaming throat. Finally, I had pulled all the blood I could and his body was limp and lifeless in my arms.

My rationality returned full force. I could feel my shield surge with renewed strength and my senses were at a peak. My vampire side had been sated and was satisfied and strong once again. My soul however, was in tatters.

I gently laid Johnny down, and closed his eyes with my cold fingers. My horror, anger and self-loathing raged inside me and I stood up and glared at the sadistic cunt that brought my crew to their deaths.

"Don't I get a thank you, Isabella? Are you not fed and satisfied?" She had the nerve to ask, her voice innocent but mocking.

I let out a scream that turned to a growl as I lost the calm that that I had been striving for since my vampiric awakening. Every shred of logic, sense and caution flew from me as I flew at her.

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**A/N- Okay my sweet, gentle readers. What do you think? ****I need some lovin' in the form of reviews, so please hit that beautiful green button for me. Please?**

**If you're confused at all let me know. Heads up: Bella was distant because her thirst was weakening her shield and she was being subjected to everyone's thirst, rage and all in all, typical newborn stuff. Thus, she was afraid to really speak or be around her boys because she didn't want them to witness her losing it. **

**Jasper and Peter are smart but Bella has thrown them for a loop since she woke up so they have almost forgotten that she's a newborn and therefore they were confused at her distance, when they really should have realized it was tied to her thirst. **


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N- I don't own Twilight. **

**Big thanks to everyone that REVIEWED my story so far. I love all the alerts and story favorites I've received as well. Please review if you like my story, it helps me know what works and what doesn't. **

_**To clarify: Bella's shield was weakening when she was starving, preventing her from blocking the emotions of others, but she could still keep her own feelings inside her self.**_

**I was digging the latest chapter of Awaken to Serve by Jasperbells, how bout ya'll?**

**And now on with the reason you're reading this:**

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**Peter**

I know I shouldn't have been surprised by Maria's sadistic actions against Izzy, but I was. Maria had always found ways to break 'her' newborns, making them more compliant to her will. She often destroyed what she deemed was most prized by the newborn she was fucking with, whether it was a family member, property, or a simple possession. This had to be an all time low for the cunt.

I had been drinking from a stout old man when I nearly choked on the blood that was poring down my thirsty throat. Izzy's thoughts shocked me to my core. I had quickly finished up and crept up behind Maria, keeping a safe distance from her. I heard Izzy in my mind repeating names, the word 'no' and swearing up a blue streak.

It didn't take long to figure out that Maria had kidnapped her entire bootlegging crew and brought them here to meet their death. My eyes aligned with Maria's bone white hand gripping a tall, burly man with greased up hair. I heard him call out to Izzy using her bootlegger name, Freya.

Her thoughts kept flooding my mind and I knew that the man that Maria was clutching, the man that I knew she would use to break Izzy, was Johnny.

Johnny McCormick, the only friend, ally and protector she had had in years. This was her second-in-command, the man she had trusted above the rest of her crew. I watched as Maria used her sharp claw-like fingernail to cut the skin at Johnny's jugular. When the scent of his blood hit the air, I knew why my feeling that Izzy would need us had been so strong.

I watched in sadness as Izzy leaped at Johnny, attaching her raspberry red lips to his pulsing jugular. She sucked hungrily, a look of ecstasy and pain etched on her face. The combination was odd, and had it been any other situation I might have given her shit for it. Now all I could think of was how shitty she would feel when her hunger was satisfied. Shitty was probably an understatement.

I tensed when I saw her lay Johnny down gently, closing his eyes with her fingers. Her thoughts were less coherent but her rage was palpable. I saw Jasper flinch from the corner of my eye and I knew that not only was she sending her thoughts to him as well, her emotions were pounding into him relentlessly.

Jasper watched Izzy with a face so full of pain and anger that for a moment I thought he might collapse into dry sobs. My head snapped back to Maria and Izzy when I heard the bitch taunt Izzy. I crouched down and sprang, just in time to intercept Izzy's attack on Maria.

Izzy clawed at me, growling so menacingly that I had to suppress my fight or flight instincts. I knew I just had to try and calm her down. I began shouting in my mind, hoping that she would pick up on my thoughts. If she had inadvertently linked her mind with Jasper's and my own then surely I could reach her.

_Izzy, NO! Not now, kitten! You know now is not the time! Don't let her fuck everything up… Please! I need you, Jasper needs you and if you try and kill her like you want to, everything will go to shit. Either you will die, or what's meant to happen will not come to pass. Please, Izzy!_ I repeated this over and over, hoping she would pick up on the message at some point.

Immeasurable seconds passed with Izzy fighting my grip. She was stronger than I was, but I knew that she would not use her full strength if it meant hurting me. She continued to struggle against my hold, and it took all my effort to keep her in my arms. Her growling never ceased and it barely drowned out the evil giggling of Maria. I wanted so bad to just let Izzy go, to let her exact her revenge and free us all of her tyrannical, sadistic rule. But I couldn't.

I knew that something great would come to us soon, but only if things continued on in the manner that they had been for decades. If Izzy got to Maria, our eventual lasting happiness would be in jeopardy. I tightened my hold at that thought. Her struggles eased slightly, and I began to hear my thoughts echoing in her mind, mixed in with her own thoughts and memories. I continued my mantra, knowing I was closer to getting her calm.

"Major!" Maria snapped, as she saw Izzy calming. I could see him trying to block off the emotions he was receiving and I felt a wave of calm sweep over us. Izzy relaxed fractionally, her growl reduced to a rumbling in her chest.

"Maria." Jasper replied coldly, walking to her side. I could see his contempt for her, even if she herself couldn't. His eyes were glacial and menacing, it shocked me for a moment before I remembered that this is how it was going to be from now on. I had grown used to the resigned apathy that he usually held in his eyes when he looked at Maria, and the new emotions warmed me. I knew the fucker would come around!

"Have the newborns clean up after themselves. Get this one in control before I have you dispose of her, power or no power." Her voice grated despites its harmonious sound. A seductive smirk appeared on her face before she continued, "Oh, and when you're done with that, come to my quarters so we can celebrate. Privately."

The grip that I had gradually loosened on Izzy had to be reinforced swiftly as she began to struggle with renewed fervor. The growls that had quieted under Jasper's influence grew deafening in my ears.

"Aw. It seems you have an admirer." Maria cackled with glee as she ran a delicate finger down Jasper's chest. I saw him stiffen, but his face was a carefully composed mask of indifference.

"Take care of her Peter." Jasper's words could be taken two ways. For Maria's benefit it sounded threatening, but I knew he meant for me to be there for her. I wouldn't let him down. I gathered my strength and threw Izzy as gently as I could away from me. She landed in a crouch, and before she could run back to attack Maria I had grabbed her arm pulled her along with me in run away from camp. She stopped trying to break free from my grip and turn around about ten minutes into the run. I ran in what seemed an aimless direction, but I had a purpose.

Her rage had simmered down slightly but I could hear the word 'no' repeating every so often in her mind. Images flashed in my mind, courtesy of my sister. I saw a smirking Johnny offer his hand in order to help Izzy step down from a car. He opened doors for her, patted her hand occasionally and was just _there_ in many of the memories that rolled around in her mind. Her grief and self-loathing left a bitter flavor in her thoughts and I wished I could take it away from her.

We ran hard until I picked up Maria's scent and followed her trail. I could tell Izzy was too preoccupied to realize that we were heading back to where it all began for her. I only hoped this was a good idea.

I forced her to continue when her steps faltered as realization dawned. We were fast approaching the cream colored house that was illuminated by the full moon. I could smell the scents of her crew intermingled with Maria's sickly sweet odor. I saw her snarl at me as we reached the porch. I stepped back, giving her some space. Her anger was growing and her thoughts only moved faster in response, her memories continued and I could also hear a few choice words aimed at me.

"Why didn't you let me kill her?!" She growled at me. I raised my hands up in front of me, the universal gesture of surrender didn't soften the glare she was sending me. I walked backwards until my legs hit the railing. I leaned against it and worked to calm myself in hopes of it penetrating her shield and calming her.

"You know why, Iz." I kept my voice level. I saw her flinch and her response flashed in my mind as soon as the words were out.

_I don't fucking deserve it_. Her words were filled with pain as they ghosted over my mind. I knew that she meant that the ultimate happiness we both knew would come of this all if we played our cards right. Oh, fuck. Not this self-imposed punishment bullshit. I had dealt with it for years with Jasper, knowing that Izzy would come someday to get us the fuck out of here with more than we could ever imagine, and I'd be damned if she became Jasper Jr. all of a fucking sudden.

"Fuck that, Isabella! You _do_ fucking deserve it! You didn't ask for this shit and you didn't seek out your friend to suck him dry! You followed your goddamn vampire instincts and you fed. Big. Fucking. Deal! Did you think you would be the only fucking vampire in existence to never drink blood?!" My words came out in a harsh whisper. She looked shocked at my words, the 'big fucking deal' part was repeating in her mind.

She threw her head back and roared. "BIG FUCKING DEAL?! I killed the closest thing I had to a fucking friend. That 'meal' was the only one that had my back the last couple years. I drained him, I fucking **ATE HIM**! I'm a goddamn monster, a killer! I killed so many people tonight, Peter. I fucking lost count of how many throats I ripped out! I'm evil. Who the fuck am I to stop Maria, when I'm just as fucking evil as her?" Her voice had gradually reduced its volume until she ended in a pained whisper. My dead heart clenched at the sight of her standing as still as a statue, self loathing etched in her mind. I caught a quick glimpse of a stray fantasy in her mind:

Izzy allowing herself to be ripped apart in battle, a stoic mask on her angelic features.

I roared in her face and leapt off the porch away from her. She would not fucking let herself get killed. I would die before I let that happen. I ran to the well I had spotted a few yards away and I gathered up two bucketfuls of water. I saw that Izzy had walked quietly to a small cornfield behind the house, images of her death still flashing in our minds.

Using vampire speed I found the bathtub that was in a makeshift wash room and I filled it with the crisp, cold water that I lugged from the well. My determination lent me a speed that I had never reached before. In two minutes the claw-foot tub was full and I ran out to grab Izzy.

She offered no struggle as I picked her up and ran with her back to washroom. I set her on her feet before quickly ripping the jeans off her frame. I heard her intake of unnecessary breath at my action. I gave her no time to recover before I pushed her into the water. I knew that she wouldn't be affected by the cold, but the shock of it seemed to make her mind suddenly disengage from my own. Only my thoughts swirled in my head.

I took this as a sign that she was coming to her senses. Obviously her extreme emotions played a part in her reaching out and linking her mind to mine and Jasper's. Hopefully now that she had been shocked into gaining some sense, logic and self-forgiveness would follow. I looked down at her, looking adorable in a drowned kitten sort of way.

Jasper's white shirt remained on her curvy body, though it was pretty shredded from the battle and her struggles with me. Her legs stretched out in front her, almost blending into the white of the tub. I gripped her shoulders and dunked her under water, knowing a little more shock was necessary and she couldn't drown anyway. I let her come up after a minute but kept my hands on her shoulders. I tightened my grip until she looked me in the eye.

"You will not get yourself killed, do you understand?! How could you think something like that? We _need_ you, Iz. I need you, Jasper needs you. You don't understand how much you've helped and changed both of us. We _existed_ before you came. Now we are _living_. Or living as much as an undead, immortal can." I couldn't help but adding. The blank look that she had been giving me shifted slightly. I continued.

"You are my sister now. The only one I've ever had; human or vampire life. You can't expect me not to die to protect you! And Jasper. I have never seen him act the way he has since you woke up. He's projected emotions I have never felt him project since I've known him, which is a long fucking time, more than fifty years, Iz. You are not a monster or a killer. Yes, you are a vampire. Yes, you were forced into battle for evil purposes, but that doesn't make you evil. This is what Maria _does,_ the way she gets her army's submission. You are giving Maria her own way if you don't snap out of this self-flagellation bullshit. I'm sorry that you fed from Johnny, but I know he forgave you. Forgive yourself, Izzy, because eternity is a long time to spend rehashing something you can't change. It's done and over with."

Her eyes flashed from bright red to the hazel she had said was her mother's eye color. The hazel was beautiful, but heartbreakingly sad.

"It hurts, Peter. How am I going live with killing innocent humans in order to survive?" Her question was a valid one. I didn't have an answer.

I saw venom fill her eyes, and a dry sob escaped her throat. She brought her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. Her forehead fell to the tops of her knees as she continued to sob. I was so wrapped up in my thoughts on how to help her I missed the sudden smell of vampire. I heard a crash and a low growl.

I jumped to my feet, crouched in front of my sister. The door opened suddenly and flew into the wall with such force, the house shook for a moment. I tensed, ready to leap at the intruder.

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**A/N- So….. ya…… what do you think. Hit that review button and I'll dole out the next chapter speedy-like. **


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N- Hello gentle readers: I do not own Twilight, if I did then Jasper would be with Bella!**

**I'm super excited by the response I got from my last chapter and I really want to thank you all for reading and especially to those who REVIEWED. You guys rock my world! **

**Oh, and I'm really not going to be one of those authors with a cliffie at every chapter's end… Last chapter's cliffie was unintentional; I just got tired and wanted to post something. **

**On with the show:**

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**Jasper**

As we ran back to camp, I wished I could have kept a hold on Isabella. Her anger, thirst and guilt were all fighting for dominance inside her and I wanted nothing more than to soothe her. Touch always amplified my gift and the contact would be distracting to us both, with that strange electricity. My thoughts and emotions were in chaos, and quite frankly I could use that distraction. It was strange that the cause of my jumbled insides was also the cure. _Isabella_.

Seeing Isabella protect me, risking her own safety, had ignited something inside of me. I had never before felt so alive, so strange, so confused and so _cared_ for. I remember bits and pieces of my human life, faces of my family. I knew they loved me and I loved them, but the emotions behind the knowledge do not exist to me; it was like stating a fact like a state capital. Actually _feeling_ that another cared for me as deeply as Isabella apparently did melted a part of me that I didn't even know existed.

I wanted nothing more than to just sit and figure out everything that had been happening inside of me since Isabella awoke; for an empath I was finding it hard to understand and deal with my own emotions. I wanted to understand this new feeling that had been growing in the last week; it reminded me of the new emotion that I had identified as affection, only it was more intense, warming and consuming. It's pretty fucked up that I have to identify and try to understand positive emotions, but in my defense I had only felt negative or neutral emotions since I became a vampire.

My throat suddenly lit up in flames in reaction to the human scents that my troops and I picked up on as we approached camp. I tried to stifle the raging thirst, but I couldn't get a handle on it as well as I would have liked. I had fed during Isabella's change and while I was thirsty, I knew I could go another week without feeding. The newborns picked up their pace and reached camp quickly, arranging themselves in the lines I taught them to create. They knew they were going to feed and the excitement, thirst, impatience and aggression were nearly overwhelming.

The growling increased as Maria emerged from her tent. She wore her usual attire; a dark, flowing skirt and a dark, tight blouse that exposed her cleavage. She dressed for appeal and not practicality since she rarely got her hands dirty with the actual fighting of her goddamn territory. I was uneasy with what I was picking up from her emotions: excitement, pleasure, supremacy, lust and malice. I could have written it off as her usual emotional climate after we gained more territory but the way she kept shooting glances at Isabella, who looked like she was a second away from turning tail and running, had me re-evaluating the reasons behind her emotions. I didn't like the looks Maria was throwing Isabella's way one fucking bit.

"I see our campaign was successful. Well done. In reward for our recent accomplishment, I have arranged for a feast." Maria's voice caused the dull roar of the newborns to cease. I was expecting this; after a successful campaign Maria often brought us humans in 'celebration'.

I watched as the newborns salivated venom at the procession of humans that emerged from Maria's tent. The human's emotions and scents reeked of fear, only further exciting the newborns. I stepped away from the pouncing newborns, I could hold off on feeding and I needed to focus on blocking the emotions I was receiving. I tried to go as long as possible without feeding; the emotions of my prey affected me more than I could handle at times.

The scent of blood in the air began to cloud my senses slightly, a haze of bloodlust forming around me. I locked my limbs in resolve and planted myself away from the humans. I tried to distract myself so I sought Peter with my eyes. He was feeding from an older man, but his eyes were locked on something to my left. I followed his line of sight after I realized that the sudden spike of fear, understanding and sympathy were coming from him.

Isabella was walking backwards slowly, away from an approaching Maria dragging a tall human male with her. They stopped a foot short of a still retreating Isabella and I picked up on the confusion and shock that began to emanate from the human. Isabella looked like she wanted to be sick, I couldn't feel her emotions at the moment but her face was like an open book.

"Freya?" I heard the man say. I froze. The pieces clicked together quickly and I realized the excitement and pleasure that Maria had been feeling had less to do with our new territory and more to do with torturing her latest newborn into submission. I had to suppress a growl and my instinct to protect Isabella from Maria and also herself. This was going to go nowhere good all too quickly.

"Johnny." Isabella's beautiful voice was full of pain as she replied softly. Johnny's fear spiked and I wanted to jump in front of him, blocking him from Isabella knowing the scent of fear only provoked our kind.

"Isabella, I brought you a treat." Maria's glee was astounding and I wanted nothing more than to rip her fucking head off for hurting the one being that had my insides in knots, the being that introduced me to the first positive emotions I had known in more than half a century. But I was locked into place by the sudden onslaught of thoughts and emotions that were not my own.

"NO!" Isabella screamed. I wanted to rush to her side but her mind was screaming at me and I was locked in place.

_No… No!! Not fucking them! No! Johnny, Otto, Stan, Leroy, Donny, Frankie, Carl, Jack, Bill, Randy, Mark... My entire crew. Dead. Fuck no! Please, no. __**Please, God, NO! **_

The full extent of the situation dawned on me as I heard those thoughts, and her emotions almost brought me to my knees. Her pain, anger, self-loathing, fear and affection held me down. I tried to block them but as soon as I began to make headway, Maria had spilt his blood and Isabella had pounced.

I felt her pain and ecstasy at once. I felt Johnny's acceptance, forgiveness and that intense, warming affection that I still couldn't name. I felt it all and I couldn't move for the intensity of it all. It was times like these that my gift was more of a curse. I watched as Isabella laid her friend down, closing his eyes with a gentleness vampires are not known for. Her thoughts continued to flow into my mind and if I wasn't a vampire they would have overtaken my own. She was at once horrified, self- hating and angry. She stood and faced Maria, determination written on her face.

"Don't I get a thank you, Isabella? Are you not fed and satisfied?" Maria questioned, apparently the bitch had a death wish. What happened next was so fast a human would have missed it. Isabella let out a venom-curdling scream and lunged at Maria.

Peter caught her before she could reach Maria and I never felt so grateful in my existence. Isabella's emotions overcame me and matched my own; pain and anger. I hated seeing her in so much pain. Peter held her firm and she fought his grip but I could tell she was holding back, not wanting to hurt him. I could hear her thoughts become infused with Peter's voice. He was telling her to calm down and saying it wasn't time yet. That was the second time I heard him tell her that shit. I was getting really fucking tired of being out of the loop.

Isabella began to calm down slightly but her thoughts continued to stream into my head unchecked. I wanted to reach out for her and soothe her but I settled for sending a wave of calm. Maria called me over to her and as I moved to her side I had to suppress the urge to decapitate the demonic cunt. If Peter was telling Isabella it wasn't time to murder the devil's spawn, then I knew I needed to follow that unspoken edict.

"Maria," I said, keeping my voice neutral. I never hated her more than I did in that moment. Any loyalty or twisted attachment I had to her as my maker and provider was severed completely. She was my enemy now and soon she would pay. The strategist in me knew that I needed to keep up with business as usual until Peter and Isabella said it was time to end her.

"Have the newborns clean up after themselves. Get this one in control before I have you dispose of her, power or no power." She ordered. I already knew the procedure, so I waited for what she really wanted to say. I didn't have to wait long, as I noticed her smirking at me in a would-be seductive manner. My stomach tuned over, but I kept my face impassive.

"Oh, and when you're done with that, come to my quarters so we can celebrate. Privately." The waves of lust that poured from Maria were quickly overshadowed by the spike in jealousy that came from Isabella as suddenly as her growls had emerged.

I tried not to let the shock show on my face at Isabella's emotions. I heard the whispered word, "Mine," run across my mind in what sounded like Isabella's beautiful voice, but I couldn't be certain. I could feel Maria's glee and jealousy spike as she noticed Isabella's reaction to her words.

"Aw. It seems you have an admirer." Maria ran a thin finger down my chest, while giggling in an effort to show her dominance and bury her jealousy. I stiffened as she touched me, not allowing myself to recoil as my body so desperately wanted. I needed to make sure Isabella would be okay, and the only way to ensure that would be for her to get out of here. Now.

"Take care of her Peter." I ordered knowing he would understand what I meant. Maria was none the wiser to my true intentions. I would have to play the part. I saw Peter throw Izzy away from himself and take off running with her. I watched them until I couldn't see them anymore before I turned back to the newborns. I instructed them to bury the corpses and then to return to camp when the task was accomplished, as usual.

Maria had already left to her tent by the time I was done issuing orders, and as much as I wanted to prolong the inevitable I knew it would only arouse suspicion. I walked at human speed to her tent, all the while tuning into Isabella's mind. I saw flashes of memories, emotions from those memories and occasional glimpses of the desert stretching before her as she ran with Peter by her side. I wanted nothing more than to try and talk to her in my mind but I knew she would not hear me, she was too consumed in her own pain and recollections.

I reached Maria's tent and entered it slowly, already knowing what lay behind the thin canvas. As I expected Maria was standing naked waiting for me, her lust polluting the entire tent. It could not be denied that she was perfect. Her petite frame was sculpted in the perfection that is known only to the great statues of the world and vampires. Her pale skin didn't hold as many scars as one would assume for a 'leader' of a vampire army. Her breasts were larger than most, and her ass was perfectly proportioned. She had crossed her legs in an attempt to be coy, almost covering up the curls that covered her sex.

"Major. You did well today, as usual. Are you ready for your reward?" Maria asked me as she stalked towards me slowly. Her lust would usually be enough to consume me, but I was surrounded by a haze of emotions that came from Isabella's mind to my own. I was grateful so fucking for that haze. I kept my mouth shut, not trusting myself to give her the answer she wanted. She didn't notice my lack of words. She placed her hands on my lower stomach and ran them up to my chest, before ripping my shirt off my body.

Her marble lips began to suck and nip at my torso in a lustful frenzy. I felt her tongue trace around my right nipple while her hands stroked up and down my back. I swallowed the venom that had pooled in my mouth at my anger at the fucking whore that was attached to me like a fucking dog in heat. I placed my hands on her shoulders, hoping she wouldn't notice the lack of passion or lust in my touch.

Her head tilted up and I knew she wanted to kiss me, so I lowered my lips to hers. A burst of pain came anew from the connection that was maintained by Isabella and I could hear her words screaming in my mind. The burst of life from the connection caused my lips to slip past hers and land on her cheek. I tried to play it off and I decided to trail small, close mouthed kisses on her face and neck. She moaned in appreciation and the scent of her arousal permeated the air.

Suddenly I could hear Isabella's words echo in her mind, "BIG FUCKING DEAL?! I killed the closest thing I had to a fucking friend. That 'meal' was the only one that had my back the last couple years. I drained him, I fucking **ATE HIM**! I'm a goddamn monster, a killer! I killed so many people tonight, Peter. I fucking lost count of how many throats I ripped out! I'm evil. Who the fuck am I to stop Maria, when I'm just as fucking evil as her?"

I wanted to snarl at the woman in my arms for causing my Isabella's pain and doubt. Isabella was nothing like the evil fucking whore in front of me. I realized my mouth had stilled at the juncture of her neck and shoulder and I pulled myself together and kissed her shoulders. I felt her small hand trailing the waistband of my pants and she suddenly reached for my cock. I could feel her stiffen at what she found.

"Something the matter, Major?" She asked, referring to my flaccid dick. I smirked down at her, letting her know that it wasn't my problem.

"I haven't fed in a couple weeks." I replied. She nodded and tried to stroke me into a hard-on. She pressed her tits to my chest and rubbed against me while moaning into my ear. Her ministrations were starting to have an effect. I hated the bitch but my dick was getting stroked and as a man, it reacted. Slightly.

Her emotions were exuding triumph and pride as my cock rose to half-mast. I reigned my anger in, feeling so fucking at a loss as to what to do I couldn't stand it. I didn't want to fuck her, my cock obviously was in agreement, but if I didn't who knows what conclusions she would draw from the rejection. An image appeared in my head that wasn't coming from me: Isabella getting ripped apart by vampires, a stoic look on her angelic features.

Whatever progress Maria had made on hardening my dick so she could ride it was lost as that image flitted through my head.

Maria growled as she realized I went soft again. She pulled away from me and reached for a robe. She covered herself and turned her angry red eyes on me. I sent a wave of calm and regret to her, hoping that she wouldn't try in rip my dick off for not giving her the pounding she had obviously wanted. She relaxed fractionally but I could feel the anger and wounded pride come from her.

"Go feed. Obviously you are too hungry to be of any use to me at the moment. Send in the red headed newborn on your way out." She demanded. Yep, her pride was definitely wounded and I knew that was the only reason she wasn't looking too far into my bullshit excuse. We both knew that hunger didn't really affect a vampire's sex drive unless a vampire was literally starving. She could see the ruby in my eyes, but she didn't acknowledge the lie.

I left the tent and spotted the red headed newborn that Maria had requested. I sent him a wave of focus and calm before approaching him and informing him that 'Mistress Maria' wanted to see him. I felt his confusion and compliance before I turned on my heel and started running towards Peter and Isabella's scents. I followed their trail and as I ran I was finally able to focus on what I really wanted to focus on. Miss Isabella Marie Swan.

The images of her death had been branded into my mind from the moment they appeared and I was fucking scared. I wasn't sure if it was just wishful thinking on her part or a fact. Had something happened while Maria had been pressing herself to me? Had they been ambushed by a warring coven? I suddenly felt a disconnect in my mind and realized I was no longer hearing Isabella. My legs moved faster than they ever had before as my thoughts took me to dark places. My panic was rising and I knew the only thing that could soothe me was seeing my Isabella whole and alive.

I was approaching a white house and I could smell their scents in higher concentrations as I approached. I didn't slow as I reached the porch, and the door took the impact of my hasty entry causing a crash. I could smell Isabella and Peter in a room on the left and I charged in, sending the door flying into the wall.

Peter stood in front of a wet Isabella, crouched and ready to spring at me. Recognition flooded him and I felt his relief at seeing me. He moved away from Isabella who was sitting in a bathtub, her head tucked into her knees. It was as if she was so consumed with her thoughts, the outside world didn't exist. I noticed the slight shaking of her shoulders and I knew that the stoic, strong woman I knew was in serious pain from killing her first human and first batch of deadly newborns. Peter sent me a serious look before he stepped around me and left the room.

I followed my instinct and did what my body and soul were calling me to do. I lowered myself into the tub behind her, stretching my legs out so they were on either side of her and wrapped my arms around her. She froze for a moment before melting back into my chest and positioning her body so her face was buried in my neck with her arms around my still bare torso. I rubbed her back much like I had earlier in the evening and I felt the electricity flow again. It seemed different this time; everything was clearer and more intense. Even the electricity seemed more charged than ever before.

"Darlin'? Please tell me what I saw in your mind won't come to be. Please, Bella." I practically begged her. She allowed me to feel her sadness and I held her tighter.

"We need you, Bella_. I_ need you. I'll do everything in my power to keep you safe and happy, if you'll only let me. I can only do that if you stay alive, sugar." I whispered in her ear.

I felt her shiver against me. A wave of lust and longing hit me before it was reeled in. I couldn't be sure who it came from in all honesty. She was pressed against me in my tattered white button down and it was desperately transparent. Her long legs were bare and touching my own trouser clad legs. She lifted her head away from my neck, and I missed the sensation of her warm breath fanning out over my skin.

Her eyes met mine and they were that beautiful hazel again. That intense, warming, affection-like feeling was back with a vengeance and I noticed it seemed to only be getting stronger and more consuming every time it came out to play. Her hand lifted from its spot on my chest and came to rest on my cheek.

"I promise I won't let that happen. I'm so sorry, Jazz. I never meant to hurt or worry you or Peter. I just can't… I can't imagine having to keep killing innocent humans to satisfy my own needs. I don't want to hurt anyone." She whispered brokenly. My dead heart wrenched at the sight of her in pain. I smoothed some wet strands of hair away from her eyes and tucked them behind her ear, my hand lingering on her neck. My thumb stroked her soft, warm skin and I reveled in the feel of it.

"We'll figure something out, Bella. It will all work out, I promise." I vowed. Her eyes began to lose a bit of the pain and filled with another emotion I couldn't place. She leaned forward and brought her plump raspberry red lips to my cheek. My eyes closed in response and I wanted to keep her there, with her lips on me for eternity. She began to pull back but I held her in place and kissed her cheek gently, trailing my kisses until I reached the corner of her mouth. I heard her breath hitch and I felt my own do the same. I pulled back a fraction of an inch and looked into her eyes.

Her eyes were a liquid moss, swirling with emotions I knew I mirrored. I leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on her warm lips. If my heart could beat, it would have thrummed like a hummingbird's wings at the brief contact. I felt like I had suddenly turned into a ball of fire the way my body lit up with heat in response.

Isabella sent me what she was feeling and I immediately picked up on that confusing, consuming, warming, affection-like feeling I had been feeling. I was glad she shared it and figured that one day soon she could tell me what it was called. I sensed her confusion and pain as well but it had lessened and was mixed in with dizzying affection, relief and lust. I sent her my emotions and as we stared at each other, faces inches apart, breath mingling we drowned ourselves in each others emotions. I had never felt so connected to someone in my life; no words were needed with us. We could understand each other just by sharing this piece of our souls with each other.

I lost track of time; it had ceased to matter now that I had Bella in my arms and I knew she was safe. We probably would have stayed in that tub for who knows how long had it not been for an impatient throat being cleared. Our eye contact was broken and the bubble of emotions that we had surrounded ourselves in had popped as we snapped our eyes to a smirking Peter.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything." His tone was full of mirth. I felt Bella's embarrassment and annoyance at Peter's appearance. I sent Peter a warning look and he just laughed in response.

"Don't glare at me Jasper. We got shit to do, things to plan, clothes to put on if you know what I'm saying. Get your ass out of the tub and let's get started!" His gleeful tone made me want to deck him. Bella moved away from me and I reluctantly let her go as she stood. I tried not to stare at her, but I couldn't help taking in the sight of my wet shirt clinging to her body like a second skin. She placed her hand on the edge of the tub, before stepping out. A loud metallic crack rang out and I realized Bella had taken a chunk out of the bathtub with her grip. She looked shocked and Peter burst out laughing.

"What the fuck is so funny?!" Bella questioned. Peter continued to guffaw and I sent him a wave of calm before he pissed her off too badly.

"You should have seen your face when you broke that shit off. You're a vampire Iz. We are the strongest things on the planet, of course you can break metal like that!" Peter explained. Bella still looked confused.

"You haven't come in contact with normal human things since you've been turned. What would seem like a firm grip on anything will probably disintegrate it. In order not to break everything you touch you have to basically barely touch or grip it." I elaborated. She nodded in acceptance before reaching for the towel that Peter had in his hands. She gingerly wrapped it around herself before walking out of the open door.

Peter still had that annoying smirk on his damn face and I sent him a wave of annoyance. He just lifted an eyebrow and walked away. I sighed and submerged myself under the water for a couple minutes, making sure I calmed my raging erection. Damn it if Bella didn't do shit to my body that I never imagined could be done, and she wasn't even trying. When everything was back under control I lifted myself out of the water and followed Peter's scent to a small room that was filled with books.

He sat on the desk, reading a book that he must have picked from the shelves that were near over flowing. I went over to the nearest shelf and began to scan the titles.

"I see you guys have found my office." Bella's sweet voice filled the room. I turned to her and smiled. She had changed her clothes, finding a fresh pair of men's jeans and a plum colored blouse. The sleeves were shorter than my shirt had been and I could see new scars on her arms. I winced automatically, wishing I could have protected her better instead of her protecting me from the ambush.

"Would you like a shirt or dry pants? Theirs plenty of clothes around here…" Bella trailed off, her eyes tracing my body before looking down and away. I could tell she was embarrassed even if he was shielding her emotions. I nodded and left quickly to find fresh clothes. I found a room with bunk beds and noticed a few bags full of clothes. I rifled through them and found some worn jeans that would fit. They were a bit loose on my waist and they hung low on my hips as a result but they would do. I found a plain black t-shirt to go along with the jeans and made my way back to the office.

Bella was sitting behind her desk, a far off look on her face. Peter was still perched on the corner of the desk, but his eyes were distant as well. I sat down on a chair in front of the desk and waited for one of them to speak.

"The time is coming. Plans need to be made and we need to make sure we account for anything that could happen." Peter used that ominous voice that irked me. He said he wasn't a gypsy fortune teller but he sure as shit sounded like one.

"Before we begin to discuss that, I just want to say I'm sorry. To both of you. I'm sorry for losing it back there and making you worry. I promise not to leave you two like that if I can help it." Bella said softly. Her eyes were trained on her lap and I knew she felt ashamed of her thoughts. Peter patted her shoulder and I sent her a wave of understanding and affection.

"There's nothing to apologize for, Bella. We've all had those thoughts and feelings at some point. We'll help you through it." I replied. She sent a small smile my way.

"Bella?" She smirked at me. I gave her a half-grin before replying.

"Hey now, if you get to name me Jazz then I get to name you Bella." Her hazel eyes twinkled with amusement before hardening. She straightened up and determination rolled off her in waves.

"Peter's right, we need to start planning. The only question is, are you fully ready to bring Maria to justice? To end her territory grubbing and her existence?" Bella asked her piercing hazel eyes boring into my own. I held her gaze and sent her my own determination.

"I'm ready." My voice was strong and full of my determination and anger. Maria was going to die and I would dance around her funeral pyre.

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**A/N- So what did ya'll think of that semi-sex scene? To all those who wanted Jasper to fuck Maria: sorry if you're disappointed. I however, thought it was an epic BURN for Maria and I loved it. **

**To be honest, I'm not too happy with this chapter, but it is what it is. They are all on the same page now which is what I needed to get across. Oh and if you can guess what the 'odd, consuming, warming affection like emotion' is than let me know ... it's not too hard to guess but for a vamp that's gone without it his entire existence it's pretty unidentifiable ;)  
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**Any questions, comments, constructive criticisms? PLEASE LET ME KNOW! Hit that review button, pretty please!!!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N- So school sucks and is crazy so I will be updating probably once a week, twice if im lucky or feel particularly slacker-ish. Thanks to all my reviewers, alert-ers, and people who faved me. **

**Im reading a funny story that I think you should check out… Its called 'The Last Mile' and is written by catonspeed. Check it out, its worth a read. **

**I'm still going to pimp out 'Awaken to Serve' by Jasperbells because its still one of my faves and is super original so there!**

**On with the show, ya'll! Don't own shit, by the way.**

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**Bella**

"First of all, we need to figure out exactly what resources we have at our disposal." Jasper broke the silence that had lingered after his acceptance of our plot against Maria. I sent him a wave of my admiration for his direct tactical approach to the situation. He smiled back at me almost, shyly. How adorable.

"We can use whatever I have left over from my human life. My accounts are still open, so money shouldn't be an issue. We also have this house. It's in my name only and we could use it as our headquarters of sorts. I know Maria knows about it, but the way I figure it she probably thinks I won't ever come back here. Too many memories, a reminder of what I have done and what she did to my crew." I willed my voice not to tremble.

I really would never have returned had it not been for Peter. I'm lucky to have him as my brother; he knew that I needed to confront everything before I even knew it. I was accepting my actions and as much as I still hated what I had done, Peter had made a point when he'd been trying to talk some sense into me. Had I really been so fucking narcissistic that I believed I had enough control and will power to _never_ drink blood? Sucking Johnny dry sure as hell brought me down a notch, in a good way.

"We won't need money until we finish off Maria, but we should probably get an accurate figure of how much we will have when it's time to use it. That means we need to maintain those accounts, consolidate the funds and wrap up your bootlegging." Peter interjected. I sighed. Sure, _my_ bootlegging career had been over from the moment Maria sunk her godforsaken teeth in me, but it had been carried on by my crew. Now it was really over. All of my hard work, all of my goals for protecting human rights was finished.

I must have let my shield drop because Jasper looked at me with concern. He must have known the reason behind my sadness because he spoke the words that I needed to hear.

"Bella, I know you must think that your hard work is going to waste. Your reasons for bootlegging were noble; you wanted to ensure human's rights to live their lives as they see fit," Jasper paused. "Darlin', you will keep doing that. Only difference is now you are fighting for their right to just plain _live_. By letting go of your bootlegging and human life we can protect them from vampires like Maria."

I never thought of it like that, and now that he had said it my mind began to whirl with possibilities. I had an idea; an idea that would probably change the vampire world, or at least the vamp 'world' in the America's. I wasn't ready to share my idea yet, one step at a time would be better.

"Okay," I said simply. He had a point, I was a vampire now. The human world was no longer my own and for now I would let go of my human aspirations and focus on ensuring no innocent humans were turned for the greed of a cruel vampire like Maria.

"As far as using this house as headquarters, I think it could work. The only drawback is that our scents are the only ones around for miles so if Maria ever did get suspicious, it wouldn't be hard to find us. I say we use the house sporadically and later it could be our home for a while." Peter brought us back to the point. He had a smirk on his face. I really hated that smirk, but I had a feeling it had something to do with the idea of this being our home after we fucked up Maria.

"We might need a place to go to every once in awhile to regroup or plan. If we can't use this place as much as we like, we'll need to find someplace else." Jasper said. "Plotting the bitch's demise in the middle of the desert, which happens to be her territory would be fucking dumb." I wracked my brain before suddenly sitting up in my chair. How could I forget?!

"I have a small, and I mean _small_, apartment in Monterrey. I used to use it so my crew would think I was with . It's located near the open-air market. Will that be enough of scent distraction that she won't catch a whiff of us?" I said excitedly. They grinned back at me.

"It should be, and if she does catch our scent she would assume we were hunting. She allows Peter and I to hunt in the cities that are included in our territory whenever we need the strength to deal with all the fucking newborns she makes." Jasper said bitterly. I nodded in understanding.

"Before we head back to camp I'll show you where it's at. Now that we have money and a headquarters taken care of we should discuss what we want to happen and how." I said. The guys went silent for a moment. Peter had a glazed look in his eyes and I figured he was working his intuition magic. Jasper's eyes were planted on the desk that was in between us. I stared at him while I tried to think of what I wanted to do with Maria.

Thank god for my vampire mind; I could easily catalogue and memorize every beautiful expression that crossed his perfect face while running through battle plans. To be honest in that moment my mind wanted to focus solely on Jasper and I began to let it. _He_ would be my motivation, so I figured it was a good thing to take stock of him now so I could remind myself what I was fighting for when shit got hairy.

That kiss, as short and chaste as it had been, solidified every confusing, stray emotion and thought I had been having since I woke up. I had trusted him since I first laid eyes on him in my pain filled haze. I had felt a connection with him ever since then and the electricity that surged between us only intensified my apparent need and want for him.

He sure as hell wasn't my brother, and he wasn't just my friend. I knew instinctively now that he would be my everything. I only hoped that I could be his. I was brought out of my thoughts by Peter.

"We know that Nettie and Lucy are up to something. We know that whatever the fuck they are trying to pull will happen within the next month. The question is should we wait for that shit to go down before we act? Izzy, what do you _feel_ about that?" He asked me. I was confused and sent him that emotion so he could realize I didn't understand what he meant by 'feel'. He rolled his eyes.

"I know you have at least some of what I do, so close your eyes and focus on imagining what would happen if we didn't wait for Nettie and Lucy's bullshit. Then try to imagine what would happen if we did wait." He explained patiently. I could feel Jasper's curiosity and awe.

I decided to see if I really did have Peter's freaky powers of intuition, just to appease him. I rolled my eyes at him sending him a wave of disbelief before I shut my eyes and did as he told me to do.

I imagined that we waited a week from now and ambushed Maria using a half of her own newborns, I could see that we easily demolished her and I couldn't suppress a smirk as I pictured setting Maria on fire, each body part individually burning while she watched. But I suddenly felt a sadness mixed with dread in the pit of my stomach. I looked around my imaginary scene and saw that while Jasper and Peter both looked relieved and happy, Peter looked a little lost and empty. Hmm… that wouldn't do for my big brother.

I reset my 'daydream' and imagined that we attacked after helping Maria fend of Nettie and Lucy's plan. I knew for certain- and I didn't know how- that Nettie and Lucy were planning a coup. So I pictured the coup as being successful for us and imagined the aftermath. I could see us waiting a short amount of time before destroying Maria and all that were loyal to her in her army. I pictured the purple plume of smoke that I set as Maria's funeral pyre and looked around it. I saw my boys grinning like mad men and the lost, empty look was gone from Peter's face. I saw a wisp of blonde hair near Peter's shoulder, and a sudden warmth spread in my stomach. Before I could see a face to go with the flash of blond, I felt Jasper sending me a wave of confusion that snapped my mind back to my small office.

"Um… Maybe your right Peter, I think I may have that freaky intuition shit too." I said softly. Peter just grinned at me, in a very fucking annoying 'I told you so' manner. Jasper sent me a wave of awe and annoyance. I raised my eyebrow at the annoyance.

"What? Now I'm stuck with two freaky fortune telling vampires." He explained. Peter cuffed the side of his head and I just winked at him. I could feel his longing and lust at my action so I smirked in response. I held his gaze while I told them what I 'felt' about the situation.

"We need to wait until after Nettie and Lucy make their move. If we don't than Peter won't get something very special to him. That's all I got to 'feel'." I felt a burst of excitement and love coming from Peter. I broke eye contact with Jasper and watched my brother practically bounce from his perch on my desk. He looked into my eyes with such hope and happiness I wanted to hug him.

"You felt it too? Do you think I could be getting my mate? Izzy, did you feel anything else?" He questioned. I grinned back at him.

"I can't be sure, Peter. I got a real good feeling about it though. I felt that you would be happy though. We all would." I replied softly.

We got quiet, each of us reflecting on what would make us the happiest. I just knew that I wanted my happiness to be tied with my boys and I allowed myself to secretly hope that I could have more than a gentle, chaste kiss with my Jasper. I should really stop referring to him as 'mine' when he really wasn't. I sighed sadly for a moment.

"You okay over there, darlin'?" Jasper asked, concern in his deepened honey tone. I raised my eyes to his and tried to dispel the sadness I was feeling at the thought that he wasn't mine. I didn't want to accidently send him my pitiful emotions. I tried to smile warmly but I knew it didn't reach my eyes.

"Sure. I'm copacetic, Jazz." I couldn't continue to look into his searching, ruby eyes so I fumbled with a drawer in my desk and opened it, searching for a distraction. A-ha! I found something I had missed, almost sorely. I took a cigarette out of a slim silver case and found a box of matches to light it. I struck the match against the side of the box, and the sudden and sharp smell of phosphorous burned my nose, but I ignored it. I lit the end of my ciggy and inhaled.

I closed my eyes and held the smoke in my lungs for a moment before exhaling. I cracked open my eyes when I heard Peter snickering. I lifted a single eyebrow in his direction as I continued to smoke my cigarette.

"You're smoking?" Peter chuckled. I held his gaze and glared.

"Yes." I said simply.

"You know that won't do anything to you, now. You can't feel the effects of anything that could inebriate you in any way. Not even the light buzz from a cigg." Peter explained, like I was a small child. I shrugged.

"So? I like to smoke. I don't need the buzz, to be honest. Just putting the thing to my lips and inhaling is comforting enough. Old habits die hard, I suppose. And I'd like to test that 'no inebriation' theory someday soon." I didn't go into detail about how smoking really did comfort me. It reminded me of my human life and all the times I had shared a smoke with my crew or had smoked to ease some stress that seemed superficial now. I could picture myself in those situations, and I had a small gnawing feeling of something akin to homesickness thrive in my stomach.

"Iz, your projecting your thoughts." Peter snapped me back to the present. I hadn't realized I had established a mental connection with them at all. I really needed to watch myself. I looked down in embarrassment and mumbled an apology.

"That could be a problem." I mumbled aloud, more to myself than anyone else. I felt Peter and Jasper's confusion so I continued.

"I didn't even realize I had connected to your minds, I didn't intend to send you any thoughts. Earlier tonight, when I losing my goddamn mind over my actions, I did it as well! What if I start doing it back at camp? What if I accidently hook into Maria's mind and reveal everything?!" I felt like I should be hyperventilating. Jasper sent me a strong wave of calm and serenity and I began to relax slightly. Peter started laughing, much to my confusion.

"Oh, Izzy. You are fucking hilarious." Peter said between guffaws. I glanced at Jasper and shot him a puzzled look, trying to figure out if I was missing something but he looked just as confused as I did.

"She's right, Peter. That could be a big fucking problem, so why the hell are you laughing like a fucking idiot?" Jasper ground out. Peter stopped laughing but still looked amused. He sighed impatiently, like he couldn't believe we were that slow.

"Izzy honey, you only link your mind with those you _trust_ unintentionally. Soon your power will be more controlled but until then you will be picking up thoughts you didn't intend to hear and you may link your mind with ours, but _only_ ours. You trust Jasper and I and that's it. You won't send your thoughts to anyone besides us, and by the time you begin to trust others, you will have more control. So don't worry, you won't give away our trade secrets." He winked at me as he ended his speech.

I closed my eyes and thought about what he said carefully, 'listening' intently to that creepy gut feeling that I recognized as similar to Peter's annoying-but useful- fucking gift. I opened my eyes after I realized Peter was right. Fucking know-it-all.

"Fine. You win. So now that we know that I'm not going to fuck up our plan, let's continue. We wait for the coup, then we attack. We need to start figuring out who would be willing to fight with us and who will be against us." I pointed out. They nodded in sync and I suppressed the urge to laugh. They could be fraternal twins as it was, with their similar facial features and scars, but top it off with mimicking gestures and that shit was just funny. I clamped down on my humor before Jasper picked up on it and refocused.

"The newborns have a loyalty to Maria mainly because Jasper and I answer to her and show her respect. She gathers humans to feed them and that triggers their loyalty even more. Her hold on them is tenuous at best, we could easily get enough newborns on our side to at least make it interesting." Peter said cheekily.

"I've seen the way they look at you guys. They respect you and admire you both greatly. You show them how to fight and survive. You watch their backs in battle and you make sure they don't get too out of control. They might be wary of going against Maria, but wouldn't their instincts dictate that they should fight for you guys?" I asked.

"That's true to a certain extent, Bella. The problem is, for a newborn the primary instinct is blood and survival. If we attack with a minority number of vampires, there is a good chance the numbers we have will turn against us. Self-preservation and all. We need to gauge who the more lucid newborns are and work on them slowly as not to frighten them into bringing our betrayal to Maria's attention." Jasper said.

"I can try and read their thoughts. Maybe figure out which ones are more capable of rational thought?" I offered. Jasper nodded his acceptance.

"I'll observe them as well. We'll all work our own mojo and make a mental list that we will compare in week's time at Izzy's apartment. After we go back to camp Jasper and I need to stay away from you for a bit, Iz." Peter said apologetically. I tried to clamp down on the cold feeling that wanted to take reign. Not being near them would hurt me more than I wanted to admit.

"Maria thinks Peter is punishing you for your outburst against her and she thinks I went to feed. Logically, you would want to avoid Peter if he punished you, doing otherwise would look suspicious. As for me, Maria thinks that your attack was fueled in part by jealousy. She will be watching our interaction and if she feels threatened she may try and kill you before we can carry out any of this." Jasper explained. He must have seen the carefully composed blank mask I had put on at Peter's words, because I knew my shield was up.

"Okay." I said quietly. I saw the logic behind his words and I knew he was completely right. It didn't change the fact that I was squashing a growl of anger. Maria had taken my human life, she had taken a part of my innocence, she had caused me to kill and she was now taking away my only sources of comfort and love. The list of reasons to fucking kill her just grew and grew.

"We don't want to stay away, Bella. Know that. This will be over soon and when it is we'll stick together from then on out." Jasper soothed, his voice and gift crashed into me and I nodded in acceptance.

"And besides, baby sister, you can always just use your gift to talk to us." Peter hopped off the desk and pulled me into a hug. I hugged him back and rested my head on his chest for a moment and inhaled. I was glad we could still talk in our minds if I established a connection, but sometimes physical contact did more than any words could ever do. I took comfort in his blueberry and vanilla scent before I stepped away from him.

I tried to put a brave smile on my face before turning to Jasper, but I'm not sure if I succeeded. I felt his emotions intensify as he drew nearer to me. Sadness, longing, protectiveness, awe and ….love? Was I reading that right? Before I could register the authenticity of the last emotion I felt his solid arms encircle my waist and my hands ran up his arms in response before resting behind his neck.

It was strange how my body reacted automatically to his touch, giving me no time to think or be self-conscious. That was probably for the best anyway, I didn't have time to over think things between Jasper and I. We had a fucking cunt to kill and newborns to free.

I nuzzled my head into his neck and let my lips brush his collarbone as I inhaled his unique and arousing scent. I wanted imprint the feel of his arms around me, his smell, the way he tasted into my mind so that when I could handle being away from him. I felt him shiver slightly when my lips ghosted along his collarbone and I could feel a spike of lust emanate from him. I felt his warm breath on my forehead, followed by the gentle pressure of a chaste kiss near my hairline. I sighed and began to pull away. He held me firmly for a moment, just looking into my eyes before finally releasing me.

I turned away from them both, not wanting them to see my sadness.

"Let's go. I have to show you where my apartment is." I darted behind the desk and got the ledger and all pertinent documents and out so that I could take it to my apartment to deal with there. In a week's time when we met there to go over everything I could quickly tally everything up and figure out how to consolidate everything.

I blew out the Kerosene lamp and began to sprint out of the room and down the hall. I could hear the light footfalls of the boys behind me as I leapt off the porch and into the night. I called for them to shut the door over my shoulder but didn't slow my pace. I wanted to run. I needed to let some of the negative energy I was feeling over being forced away from my boys free. I pumped my legs and wished I could feel a physical pain in muscles to distract myself from the pain in my silent heart.

I instinctively knew where Monterrey was and headed towards it like a bullet from a gun. I began to slow as we neared the city, knowing that Jasper and Peter had fallen at least 5 minutes behind. I listened for their approach and waited for them to catch up with me. It was nearing dawn and the streets were emptier than usual, save for a few early birds or drunks. I stopped running and tried to walk as slowly as possible, knowing that it would appear to be 'human' speed. I saw a familiar street corner a block away and pointed it out to the guys.

I led them closer, following the familiar path past an alley when I froze. I turned my head slowly and zeroed in on the action I could see with my vampire vision taking place in the dark, gritty alley. I could smell the alcohol rolling off a man who had a scantily clad woman pressed against the wall, his grubby hands around her throat. I could feel her terror, slowly fading along with her life. His thoughts rushed over me in Spanish, which I easily translated in my mind.

_Fucking whore thinks she can get away with not giving me what I paid good money for…Bitch. Look at those lips, turning blue. Fucking deserves this… _

Before Jasper or Peter could stop me, I snarled and leapt at the man. I ripped his dirty hands off of the woman and twisted his wrists until they snapped. I heard the woman fall over, passed out from lack of oxygen as I reveled in the sounds of the fuckers bones breaking under my grip. His black eyes were full of pain and fear and the scent of it caused the already pooling venom to dribble down my chin slightly. I growled deep in my chest and released his wrists, listening to his heart thud madly in his chest. The wet _slosh-slosh_ sound made my throat ignite and I knew the remedy for it. Drink. Kill. Eat.

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**A/N- So there it is. Let me know what you think. It was kind of a filler, but a necessary one. **

**Question is: Do you think she eats the would be killer? Do ya want her to??**

**If you have questions, comments or criticisms review me and let me know. I do reply to my reviews!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N- Hope you like this. I don't own anything. **

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**Peter**

Oh, fuck.

Jasper and I had been a bit too far behind Izzy to stop her before she lunged at the man in the alley, and to be honest I didn't want to stop her. That fucker had been choking the life out of a woman that he had obviously overpowered and had wanted to take advantage of. That asshole deserved to get his dick ripped off, and whatever vengeance Izzy was now going to dole out.

Jasper moved towards her but I blocked him from advancing. He struggled for a moment before I sent him a wave of determination, knowing he'd get the hint. Whatever Izzy was going to do, it needed to be done. Something told me that this man's death would help Izzy find peace with feeding as a vampire. At least feeding from the scum of the earth.

We watched as Izzy released the man's broken and dangling wrists and growled menacingly, venom dribbling past her parted raspberry red lips. If she wasn't my baby sister, I'd have to say that there was something incredibly primal and sexy in her at that moment. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Jasper tense and his own lust leaked out of his usually well contained emotions. I shrugged mentally-must be the animalistic side of us.

Izzy threw the man against the brick wall behind him, hard enough to shock and hurt him, but not hard enough to break his spine. He was sliding down the wall, whimpers and groans escaping his throat. I could see Izzy's eyes zeroing in on his neck, and she shot forward and used her fingernail to slice through the skin covering his jugular. Her lips attached themselves to the blood flow and I could see her taking small pulls of his alcohol tainted blood.

Without warning she released him, a look of utter disgust in her face. The man had slumped down into a sitting position, on the verge of passing out. I took the opportunity to release Jasper and he picked up where Izzy had left off. His pulls of blood were strong and the man's heartbeat quieted after a minute.

I approached them calmly, knowing that Jasper was still in a feeding frenzy and could not be startled. Izzy on the other hand looked like she wanted to toss her cookies. I wondered if we would have another self-loathing episode on our hands. I fucking hoped not. Jasper stood from his crouched position near the dead man and turned to Izzy and myself. The silence wasn't terribly awkward but it wasn't comfortable either.

I eyed Izzy warily, waiting for her to speak but she was still making rather funny faces. I suppressed my chuckle; I couldn't laugh until I knew there would be no pity party. Jasper approached her tentatively, hands up in surrender. I felt like I should get a fucking medal for my restraint, I mean honestly, why the fuck was he walking to her like she was his goddamn executioner? Warlord Jasper was looking slightly afraid of a newborn. Now I'd seen it all.

"Holy Fuck! That man tasted like horse shit!" Izzy finally broke the silence. A beat passed. Jasper looked confused and I finally let it go and laughed my immortal ass off. I saw Izzy scratching her tongue, like she was trying to scrape off any traces of the man's vile flavor. My gut wrenching laughter just increased. She looked like a little kid that had swallowed some nasty medicine. Jasper began to chuckle quietly as well.

"What?! He tasted horrible! What is so fucking funny?" Izzy looked frustrated. I began to calm down. Jasper had finally dropped his hands from their previous hilarious position and had wrapped his arm around her shoulder. I reached over and tousled her long, silky strands of hair and pinched her cheek noting the lack of blood on her face. Apparently she was a neat eater. She growled at me, but I just grinned back at her.

"Kitten, that was the funniest shit I've seen in years. No newborn I've met has ever been so fucking picky as to stop feeding before draining their meal. The look on your face! For a second there, I thought we might have to hide the matches from you, so you wouldn't start a bonfire and jump in. Then you finally bust out with how bad he tasted? Priceless!" I snickered. Jasper looked half amused, half worried. Maybe I shouldn't have reminded her that she and Jasper just killed a human. Before I could begin to worry about my runaway mouth, she smirked. She fucking smirked!

"Yeah well, I probably should have sniffed him before trying to feed. Then I would have saved my poor tongue that torture." Izzy grimaced and shuddered. Jasper squeezed her tight for a moment before dropping his arm from around her shoulder altogether. I noticed that both of their faces looked pained for a moment before becoming neutral. Izzy began to lead the way out of the alley and we followed closely.

"Should we have done anything with his body?" Izzy whispered to us. I shook my head and began to explain.

"When Jasper and I hunt in the city, we don't necessarily need to dispose of the body. Sometimes we make sure it looks like a crime gone bad, but since you sliced his jugular with your nail, it will look like exactly what it was; someone sliced his throat. If you had used your teeth, we might have had to clean it up a bit. Authorities usually report vampire teeth wounds as an animal attack. When we feed in the desert we usually bury the bodies." She nodded in understanding.

Izzy led us to a peach colored building, two stories high that spanned the length of the whole block. A stairwell was placed on either side of the building and we climbed the stairs on the right side. The smell of human food, laundry and of course human blood filled the air and it both disgusted and tempted me. We stopped at a door with the number 22 on its face. Izzy looked around and quickly snatched a key that had lain hidden on the top frame of the door. We entered her apartment behind her and took in the small space quickly.

The single room was about fifteen feet long and fifteen feet wide. The window that faced the street was large and covered by a white curtain, simple and plain. The room housed a full size bed, a chest of drawers and a small desk. Izzy's personality infiltrated the tiny living place subtly. Her human scent still lingered, strawberries and freesia. A few pieces of jewelry, papers and a carton of cigarettes lay atop her dresser drawers. Her desk had more papers, books and what looked like a leather journal. While Jasper and I looked around I hadn't noticed that Izzy had suddenly stilled. I opened my mouth to ask something when I noticed how unnaturally she was standing. Like if she moved, she would crack.

Jasper picked up on my emotions and followed my eye line to Izzy. She was staring at her reflection on a full-length mirror that stood in the corner of the room with scarves, and a coat draped over half of it. Apparently Izzy wasn't much for checking herself out in her human life. I realized that she had not seen her appearance once since she had woken up, we had no mirrors at camp and we had been too preoccupied at her old house to even glance around too much.

I saw her eyes trace the features on her face and then slowly travel down her body. Surprise and incredulity were written clearly in her beautiful features. She shook her head slightly before turning to face us as if not affected by her new appearance.

"So this is my apartment. We'll meet back her next week. I'll hide the key again where you saw it. Let's go back to camp before the sun comes up." She breathed out in a rush, clearly flustered.

She made to usher us out of the room but Jasper reached for her hand and stilled her. He caught her eye and spoke with sincerity.

"You are beautiful Isabella. You were beautiful when you lay on the floor changing into a vampire and you are beautiful now. You are still Isabella Swan and an enhancement in your features doesn't change who you've always been."

Damn. That fucker was smooth. I knew he spoke the truth and exactly what she needed to hear and I was grateful. She had gone through so much since she had awoken to this life, and I knew that it could be scary as shit. Any reassurance that she was essentially the same person deep down would be welcomed.

A tiny grin graced her features aimed at my brother. He looked awestruck for a moment and I couldn't stop my chuckle. Their heads whipped towards me and I realized I always seemed to be interrupting some kind of meaningful moment or look between them. Oh well, if I wasn't getting any, they weren't either. For now.

"Yes, honey you are beautiful and precious and all that mushy shit. Now let's get the hell out of here before we expose ourselves and get fried by the Volturi." I stepped out the room and started down the stairs, listening to Jasper and Izzy follow behind me.

"The Volturi? Who are they?" Izzy asked. Most newborns we trained never needed to worry about the Volturi, especially since Maria disposed of them after their strength waned. We had reached the edge of the city and began to run at vampire speed back to camp. Jasper and I explained all we could about the Volturi and vampire laws. It wasn't a long explanation really, as the main rule was 'Don't expose the existence of Vampires'. As we neared camp Jasper veered off and sped up, intent on keeping up with appearances.

I looked over at Izzy and saw that her face was thoughtful and calculating. A strange feeling began to grow in my stomach as I watched her. Fuck. That look meant something more than just plotting against Maria. It was going to be huge, I could already feel it.

If Izzy was involved then I knew Jasper would be with her. If they were in the middle of a shitstorm then I knew I would be there too. I just hope that at some point I could take a fucking vacation. A mate would certainly help ease my tension. Hmm…

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**A/N- Short chapter, I know. There will be drama next chapter, so stay tuned. The coup d'état will also be in the next chapter or two so ****review**** and give me your opinions so I can churn some new chapters out!**

**Thanks for reading!**

**Oh, and if you have suggestions or criticism, let me know!**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N- I don't own Twilight at all, and although Stephanie Meyer is making bank over it, I wouldn't want to own it unless Jasper was with Bella like he is in my universe. Just saying.**

**So I have been reading a delightful story that I think deserves some serious love: ****Just Another ****Twisted Love**** Story**** by ****Wfhbe is funny and supernaturally packed with goodness. Read it and Review because it's great.**

**Do ya'll think I need a beta? Let me know please, Im wondering if it would help.**

**On to our feature presentation my darlin's…hehe…**

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**Bella**

It's been almost six days since I've been able to be near Jasper and Peter without my guard up. Six days of watching them go about their business as if nothing had changed, when in reality everything had. Six fucking days of a familiar loneliness that gnawed at me slowly.

When we had returned to camp, Peter had grabbed my upper arm and thrown me into the newborns that had lined themselves up upon seeing Jasper's return. I had fallen into a red headed male with a resounding crack, and although nothing was hurt I could feel Peter's remorse and determination. I knew that he hated doing that, but resolved to carry out our plan even if it meant treating me like every other newborn. Maria had watched this little episode with a smirk the size of Texas on her twisted fucking face.

I ignored every instinct to dismember her crazy ass, but I knew that I was perilously close to snapping. After that we had trained with Jasper and Peter, the rest of the newborns having been fed were slightly more calm and coherent making it easier to show them tactical battle strategies as opposed to mindless fighting with no technique. It was a double edged sword really; the newborns were being trained to kill more efficiently and we knew that it would either help us or hurt us depending on which side they chose to fight on.

I had been delving into the minds each newborn in random intervals trying to ascertain which ones were able to process and make rational decisions. I hated peeking into their minds for several reasons; it felt like I was mind raping them and if their thoughts centered on the burn in their throats my own would ignite in response. It was not fun.

I was standing next to the redheaded male that I had been thrown into with a short, dark haired male on my other side. I had already figured out that the dark haired male was still too consumed by his thirst to really be of any help at the moment but the red headed male was different. My gut told me that he was more than he appeared to be; he growled at random intervals and clutched at his throat like the rest but my feeling didn't let up. I felt his gaze on me while I watched Jasper and Peter showcasing a strategy to be used in battle. Lust slammed into me so suddenly I had to throw up my shield before I pounced on someone.

I'd felt the others lust on occasion, especially when the two other females decided they wanted to ride one of the males cocks. I never tried to discern if the lust I felt was directed at me, but in this case I knew it was and it was coming from the red head. I studied him using my amazing vampire peripheral vision while his lust continued to seep out, thankfully blocked my shield. He was paler than most of the newborns, about 6 foot with muscles that were defined but not terribly impressive. The only thing that made this average vampire stand out was his hair, which made me think of the orange-red glow of a lit fire. I decided to do some reconnaissance in his mind; as I had yet to search his.

_The things I could do to her. Mmmm…those lips wrapped around my cock, sucking and licking it until I shove it down her throat making her choke…_

Images began to appear in his mind, mainly with me on my knees. I wanted to pull out of his mind but I didn't because I was suddenly struck with just how _coherent_ his deluded fantasies were. In the minds of most I'd been able to check out I'd received mainly images of feeding, fighting and fucking with disjointed words intermittently used. Nothing like this complete-if fucking disgusting- thought.

The fantasy had continued and I tried not to cringe when the fantasy me climbed up his lap and began to fuck him stupid. I saw the fictitious Bella scream out his name, which was apparently Patrick. Eww.

I glanced at him and saw that his eyes were sweeping down my body hungrily. I knew there was something off about him! I needed to figure out why he was acting like the other newborns because something told me it wasn't simply for self-preservation. My gaze had lingered too long and his eyes met mine; crimson on crimson. His fantasies continued for a moment before they seemed to switch to a memory. Patrick fucking Maria. Maria whispering to him about how she always rewards her faithful followers with their hearts desires; whether that was blood or playthings.

Patrick's mind switched back into fantasy mode- me as his plaything courtesy of the devil herself. I broke eye contact with that final thought and yanked my mind away from his in disgust. This fucker could be a problem. It seemed to me that he believed that if he served Maria I would be his prize. The amount of lust and misplaced possessiveness would be to our detriment; he would do anything to have me as his submissive toy.

Fuck it all to hell! This was an unnecessary complication; this was a war zone and this fucker just wants to nail me ten ways from Sunday. Sick fuck. And how the hell would I tell the guys without dying of embarrassment? I decided to keep his thoughts quiet for the time being and just tell Peter to try and get a read on him, see which side he thought he'd pick. Jasper wouldn't get too much from him besides a dose of lust and thirst that he didn't need. I shifted to the front of the group watching Peter and Jasper demonstrating how to break holds.

I sent a wave urgency to the two and prayed they got the hint. I hadn't linked my mind to them too often, afraid they would pick up on the lonely tenor in my thoughts. Jasper easily broke Peter's hold on him before turning to the rest of us and splitting us up into pairs to practice. When he reached me he pointed to Peter as my partner. I sent him a wave of thankfulness in response. I felt his own wave of emotion hit me; understanding, curiosity all mixed in with longing and a hint of sadness. Before I gave into the temptation to hug him I flounced to Peter and attempted to get him in a head lock.

Peter gripped my wrist and twisted so that my grip loosened and his head was free. He whirled away and tapped the side of his head in signal. So he wanted a mind chat, I supposed it was safer, if not harder to shield my other thoughts. Once I established the connection I couldn't shield any of my thoughts from him, I only hoped he'd stick to what I was sending him and not invade my privacy. I knew there was a fat chance of that, Peter was a nosy fucker. But I knew he would at least keep it to himself.

_The redhead, Patrick is his name, he's not as irrational as he pretends to be._ I thought to Peter after I linked my mind to his. Peter quirked a brow and pounced on me placing my torso in an iron grip.

_So you think he's up to something?_ Peter questioned while I tried to twist his arms into letting me go. His grip didn't slacken as I answered.

_I know he's up to something. I think you should try and gauge which side he'll be on or maybe get a read on why he's faking. _

I gave up trying to unlock his arms and settled for giving him the unexpected. I threw myself back into him, causing us to fall backward and his grip to loosen allowing me to twist away and pull his arms behind his back with his face buried in the desert floor.

_I'll get a read on him. Nice move, kitten. Oh and is that fantasy yours?_ His thoughts were devious. I released him and jumped away, before sending him a message and then severing the mind link quickly.

_No, it isn't my fantasy_.

I fucking knew that peeping Tom would see something I didn't want him to see. Peter was feeling curiosity and concern, probably in regards to my last thought. I briefly wondered if Peter would blow our cover and go all overprotective brother on me. I doubted it; Peter could handle his shit.

Peter dusted himself off before heading to Patrick and directing me to spar with his partner while he sparred and tried to get a read on the red headed pervert. I followed instructions and soon locked the slightly darker newborn in my arms. I watched Peter out of the corner of my eye. He had Patrick by the head and shoulders and I could tell he was being rougher on him than usual. Patrick looked terrified and I had to suppress a smirk, at the way Peter was asserting his big brother side.

The rest of the daylight hours were spent practicing breaking grips and placing the strongest holds on an opponent. It became monotonous to me, but I knew that repetition would make it second nature and that was the point. When the sun began dip below the horizon Jasper called for us to break up and 'rest' for a bit. We headed back to camp and a bonfire was quickly made, while the newborns gravitated to their usual activities.

I noticed that the two females had made their selections for the evening and had retreated into the shadows with their 'partners'. I could feel the gazes of a few of the males, lingering lust-filled gazes. I edged away and took a seat on the still warm desert sand away from the fire on the edge of camp. I had a perfect view of everything going on within the camp, yet I was far enough away that I could see anyone approach with ample time to react. I easily picked out Jasper and Peter as they stood on the opposite edge of camp, arms crossed over their chests looking like prison guards.

I could see their lips moving quickly, their faces were impassive but I could detect the concern in their eyes. Peter must be informing Jasper of the Patrick situation. I hoped that Patrick wouldn't be too much of an issue. I wondered what the best course of action we should take. Obviously it was imperative that Jasper, Peter and I continue to be distant with each other; we had a potential spy in our midst. I was about to link my mind to Jasper and Peter to see what Peter might have felt from Patrick when I noticed that the red headed pervert was approaching me.

He crept closer; his hair seemed to glow brighter with the light of the fire reflecting off of it. I growled lowly in warning. Patrick hesitated for a moment before continuing his stride towards me. I plugged into his mind to get a read on what he could want. His thoughts had a determined edge to them and it made me instantly uneasy. I allowed my shield to drop so I could feel what he was feeling. Overwhelming lust and possessiveness. This could not end well.

I stood and quickly decided it would not be tactically smart to use my telekinesis on him; he would probably just tell our maker and that was not an option. I tried to push lethargy and calm on him, but he continued to sidle up to me unhindered. His lust and possessiveness were too much and with his rationality he was not easily controlled. Fuck.

His hand crept up my side and I grabbed it before it wandered anywhere near my breasts. I wanted to crush his grimy hand and tried unsuccessfully to do so. He winced and his thoughts reflected his anger at my move.

_Fucking hell! Stupid bitch, she can't beat me. She'll submit soon enough…_

I was so caught up in his mental words that I missed it when he raised the hand that I had grabbed and roughly slid his hand down the front of my jeans. I snarled in his face and tried to twist my body away from his probing hand, I would kill this asshole if it was the last thing I did. The hand that was not trying to fondle my lady parts held my hip in a vice grip, making my attempts to twist away nearly impossible. I swung my fist at his face with all my might, but his face barely registered my action.

My growls only grew in volume as I continued to fight the crazy, demented piece of shit. His hand was rough against my sensitive clit, he continued to try and shove his long fingers inside me, but my movements were making it difficult. I sunk my teeth into his shoulder and his hand shot out of my pants in response. I forced my teeth through his tough vampiric skin and tore away a chunk of him, spitting the hefty piece in his face. My anger was so intense that I was too slow in picking up the thought of his next action and I was caught off guard as his fist collided with my face sending me flying back.

Before I could jump up and tear him apart, Jasper suddenly appeared and grabbed Patrick from his mid-air leap towards me. Even with my vampire eyesight it was hard for me to keep up with the quick dismemberment of Patrick. I had never seen Jasper look more feral. Patrick never stood a chance.

_He fucking touched her. Tried to fuck with my Bella. Kill. Fucker. Burn you son of a bitch._ Jasper's thoughts reached my mind as Patrick's thoughts abruptly ended.

I watched in shock as he tossed every limb he detached into the bonfire that blazed and hissed with the venom dripping out from the severed limbs. Only after every piece was burning did he lose the wild look and his face softened and took on a worried expression. His ruby eyes met mine and I could feel his anger and jealousy ebb slightly-jealousy?- only to be replaced with worry, self-doubt and shame.

_She looks so shocked. I wish I could feel her emotions. No, actually I don't. I couldn't stand to feel her disgust. I really am a monster._ His thoughts explained his confusing emotions.

I snarled at him and he looked upset for a moment. I sent him a message in my mind silencing his thoughts.

_Jasper! Don't you dare think for a moment that I think you are a monster! Jesus! Patrick had his hand down my pants and wasn't going to let up until I killed him. You saved me the trouble, and I __**thank**__ you for helping me out when I needed it. Jazz, I will __**never**__ think of you as a monster, so you better understand that and accept it._ My mental rant had started out harsh but softened with the last sentence. I sent him a wave of thankfulness, affection, and acceptance to illustrate my point.

His face relaxed and his lips lifted up in a tiny smile. I was going to walk towards him but a movement from behind Jasper stopped me in my tracks. Maria, in her signature long, dark skirt and tight blouse floated towards us. Her face was set in anger and I could it along with a flurry of other negative emotions; shockingly there was a trickle of fear mixed in. She stopped short of Jasper and growled before speaking.

"What is going on here?"

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**A/N- Busted! So ya, let me know what ya'll think. Like it? Hate it? Want to kill me?**

**Also, as mentioned above… Beta or no beta? **

**Hit that review button for me darlings…. Love ya!**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N- Sooo…. Yeah. Sorry for the super long wait. I have a million excuses but who really gives a shit? I thought not. Enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own a single thing. Damn. Oh, and because its been soooo long, I'll put in a refresher from last chapter for ya ;)**

**Previously:**

_Jasper! Don't you dare think for a moment that I think you are a monster! Jesus! Patrick had his hand down my pants and wasn't going to let up until I killed him. You saved me the trouble, and I __**thank**__ you for helping me out when I needed it. Jazz, I will __**never**__ think of you as a monster, so you better understand that and accept it._ My mental rant had started out harsh but softened with the last sentence. I sent him a wave of thankfulness, affection, and acceptance to illustrate my point.

His face relaxed and his lips lifted up in a tiny smile. I was going to walk towards him but a movement from behind Jasper stopped me in my tracks. Maria, in her signature long, dark skirt and tight blouse floated towards us. Her face was set in anger and I could it along with a flurry of other negative emotions; shockingly there was a trickle of fear mixed in. She stopped short of Jasper and growled before speaking.

"What is going on here?"

_**Bella**_

Panic. Mind-numbing panic set in for a moment that stretched too long for my liking. I saw Jasper freeze in a second that was like an hour to me, but undetectable otherwise. Maria's anger was quickly mounting and the surge in wrath served to help me snap out of my momentary panic. I shot a quick glance at Peter, who was unobtrusively darting his eyes between Maria and I and tapping his head in signal. Thank god for Peter.

I linked my mind to Maria's quickly, something I had never done and hoped to never have to do again. Her thoughts were a snarl of complicated and rapid Spanish, hard to decipher even with my knowledge of the language. The building blocks that made her mind were easier to read, and the tenor of her mind was inescapable. Evil, greed, lust, power hungry…the list of negative emotions could go on forever.

I focused on trying to decipher her thoughts and was blessed when she recalled what just occurred from her own perspective. She had seen Jasper dismember Patrick with a quickness that astonished even her, but she had not seen the cause for the conflict. She was disappointed that she had lost the spy she had been cultivating. A spy! That's why Patrick had been off. Who she planned on using Patrick against was shrouded in her own confusion and paranoia.

While the process of panic, mind reading and realization seemed to take hours, in reality it had only been a few seconds from the time Maria had made her appearance and asked her question. I quickly linked my mind to Jaspers and sent him a wave of calm and whispered in his mind.

_She didn't see anything of importance, only that you killed him._

Jasper was the quickest thinker and best strategist I knew and I trusted that he could handle the situation now that he was aware of what Maria had seen. I was not disappointed.

"The newborn began attacking others and was resistant to my power. When I intervened, he did back down as he should have, so I disposed of him." Jasper's calm was radiating out of him and his eyes were blank as he gave his report to Maria.

I avoided moving, not willing to draw Maria's gaze to my own. She wasn't stupid, and if she even _suspected_ that Patrick had been attacking me and Jasper had intervened to protect me, she would watch us like a hawk.

"Major, are you telling me that you could not simply subdue him? I find that hard to believe." Maria's tone was as hard and cold as ice but her eyes were shooting fire at Jasper's stoic form.

"Of course I could subdue him. He was an example, one I have made a hundred times before. No one attacks me and lives. It will serve to keep the rest in line." Jasper was radiating power to an extent that even had Maria's emotions flickering between anger and wariness. He was the epitome of an Alpha male and Maria knew it.

"Of course." She tinkled. She was still wary, but as I flashed through her mind I saw her recalling incidents similar to the one with Patrick; Jasper dismembering anyone that didn't respect his authority or wouldn't back down from him when he ordered them to. She saw those incidents as tantamount to her control over Jasper, because the newborns were usually on their way to attack her and when Jaspers attempts at manipulating their emotions to be calm failed, he would automatically destroy the threat.

In this instance she was torn between glee and paranoia. Her mistrust of her sisters had her doubting Jasper's loyalty, and she couldn't quite place if this was proof of his loyalty to her or an example of how her hold had weakened. I once again jumped out of her head and focused on keeping still, silent and ready for anything.

Jasper and Maria seemed to be locked in a stare down. Jasper was still sending out calming vibes but I detected a burning anger beneath it. Maria's emotions were cycling between mistrust, anger, wariness, pride, and lust so fast it was hard to keep still. She finally settled on acceptance and tore her eyes away from Jasper's and turned to flounce back to her tent. She seemed to pause at the entrance of her tent and turned back to him.

"I will be leaving to find my sisters. They seem intent on taking over Mexico City and are watching Alphonso's troops. As you know, Alphonso has the rights to the outskirts of the city. Perhaps we will take them from him, if only to appease my dear sisters." She spoke softly, but Jasper, Peter and I heard and understood. The rest of the newborns barely spared her a glance. She entered and exited her tent swiftly, a small bag clutched in her bony hands as she emerged.

"Keep them in line and train. In three days time, you will meet me on the ridge that is outside of Alphonso's territory. We will attack after my sisters and I do some observations. Take them to feed, I want them strong and ready to fight when they arrive." She turned on her heel and leaped away, her hair catching in the wind and flowing behind her.

After a few minutes, I allowed myself to blink and finally move from the tensed position I was in. Peter visibly sagged with relief and Jasper's shoulders lost the hard, tense line that had been in them. I let out a breath, unaware that I hadn't been breathing since I first heard Maria's voice call out in the aftermath of Patrick's demise. I could still smell Patrick on me, but I took comfort in the fact that his scent was disappearing altogether from the face of the earth as he was turning to ash in the fire that was still emitting a purple plume of smoke. The newborns were growling quietly as they had been since they caught the word 'feed' come from Maria's mouth.

"Fall in!" Jasper's voice almost made me jump in its unexpectedness. Every newborn complied swiftly. When the customary lines had been formed He spoke again.

"We will be training for the next 48 hours, after which we will go into Monterrey to feed. Before we feed, you will be given instructions on how to behave. Make no mistake; those who do not listen will be destroyed on sight. For now, split into pairs and spar." His words brought an instant surge of excitement and bloodlust. I shielded myself quickly and fell out of line to see who would challenge me to a fight.

A male, with dark brown hair that kept falling into his blood red eyes pounced on me quickly and the brawl began. He was far from gentle, but he seemed to be holding back and it confused me. I ducked a punch, and sent a kick to his ribs which had him doubling up for a moment. He retaliated by sweeping my legs out from under me and before I could jump back up he, brought a leg down to crush my chest. I rolled quickly, narrowly avoiding the move. He tried to kick up and catch me in the side, but I had leapt up to my feet swiftly and launched myself at him, gathering him in my arms in a fierce hold that he was trying in vain to break. With one arm wrapped around his neck and the other reaching around him to lock his arms down I felt his corded muscle bunch and release in an effort to break my grip.

I could have brought my mouth to his pale neck, signaling his defeat, but instead I continued to hold him. He was still making an effort to break my grasp, but the sense that he was holding back reappeared and I delved into his mind to figure out what was going on. I sent him wave after wave of calm and lethargy to ease his struggles so that I could examine his thoughts with little distraction. His thoughts were less coherent than Patrick's had been, but more coherent than most of the newborns. I couldn't read any specific train of thought but I understood some things very clearly.

He _was_ holding back; he respected me too much to try and hurt me. Images of me in battle, my face a mask of fierce protectiveness disabling and killing the enemies that came across my path floated from his mind to mine.

He was thirsty and confused for the most part, unable to understand why we fought all the time, only knowing that if he didn't fight he would die. He respected Jasper and Peter and was fond of them and looked to them as lights of clarity in the otherwise confusing world he found himself in. He was fond of me as well, he thought I was pretty and he revered me as the protector of his heroes (an image of me killing Emilio before he killed Jasper explained that feeling).

I saw Maria in his minds eye switching from his vampiric recall to a hazy, obviously human, memory. He had been stalked like myself, and killed while he traveled from his Mother's home to his Father's home. I was under the impression that his mother was a Mexican citizen while his father was an American, living in Arizona.

I was aware that I had been holding him for a few minutes, neither of us moving much, my lips were near his ear, open and breathing lightly into the shell while I focused on his mind. It could pass as oddly intimate to a casual observer, but I was too focused to care.

I gleaned that he sensed the power that radiated from Peter, Jasper, and I and it seemed that he had a stronger version of Maria's gift. I knew that one day he would be able to sense what a vampire's gift was, as opposed to simply knowing it was there. The fact that he could sense our power made him revere us even more and the pedestal we were on was far above our Mistresses.

I yanked myself from his mind when I felt a few overwhelming emotions hit me from different directions. My eyes had been closed as I tried to wade through the snarl of confusion and thirst that dominated the newborn's thoughts, during which I had lowered my shield. My eyes snapped open and I glanced to my right, where amusement, worry and curiosity were warring for dominance in Peter. He was glancing between me and something to my left with a smirk on his lips.

I shifted my gaze to the source of the ball of emotions that were switching almost too fast to process. Jasper. He was emitting strong waves of concern, jealousy, anger, protectiveness and much more that I couldn't get a read on. I quickly brought my teeth to the newborns neck and released him. He seemed to hesitate in front of me, meeting my eyes and nodding before he turned away from me and went to find a new sparring partner. His name was Alexander.

Before I could find a new sparring partner, Peter had sidled up to me and gathered me into a hold much like the one I had had Alexander in. I fought back, with no real intent to dislodge him, knowing he wanted to know what had just happened.

"Have a nice cuddle?" He whispered into my ear. I threw my head back into his nose in retaliation to the jibe, satisfied when I heard a crunch. I felt bad almost immediately and decided to make up for it by linking my mind to his and showing him exactly what just happened. I recalled everything quickly and I could feel his curiosity lessen and his pride expand. Apparently he liked the ego boosting knowledge. His amusement also peaked, especially when I caught the reason why.

I was right to think that the position I had held Alexander in was a bit too intimate for a battle field. Peter had glanced at Jasper while I was still deep in Alexander's mind and had caught his facial expressions change several times before it had gone deceptively blank. Peter seemed to think I had sparked some territorial part of Jasper, while I scoffed at the idea.

I severed the link before he picked up on just how much I wouldn't mind Jasper getting a little territorial over me. I had explained the situation and I knew Peter would pass it along to Jasper soon, especially since it was clear that Alexander would fight for us when the time came. The more, the merrier.

_**Jasper**_

If my long silent heart were beating it would have stopped the moment Maria's tinkling voice rang out with chilling clarity. I froze for a fraction of a second, in fear- honest to goodness fear.

I hadn't felt that emotion since my early days as a vampire, and I thought it would never resurface, after all, I didn't fear my own death. There were times that I even welcomed the thought of my own demise.

No, this fear was not for me. It was directly linked to Bella. I froze in fear over what Maria would make of the situation, what she would do if she realized that _Bella_ triggered that response in me and not her. I was scared of losing Bella.

Immediately I dismissed the notion, irrational as it was, because the truth was that I would kill Maria or anyone who tried to take Bella from me- from _us,_ I corrected myself. Fuck waiting for the opportune moment. If Bella was in serious danger, I would eliminate the threat. End of fucking story.

Maria's ice cold ruby red eyes were boring into my own, an attempt at intimidation that was clearly failing. How did this cunt ever have power over me? I felt a wave of calm that wasn't my own brand of manufactured emotion come from behind me, suffusing me with a peace that was _not _manufactured.

_She didn't see anything of importance, only that you killed him. _Bella's sweet voice ghosted over my mind and a course of action formed instantly in response to the little kernel of knowledge.

I told her that I had been disrespected and was reasserting my authority over the newborns, something I had done a hundred times before with every single batch of newborns that had ever been sired into this fucking mess. Usually it was after Maria did what she did best; showing just how much of an inhuman monster she was and had destroyed the newborns mentally. In their grief, anger, pain and confusion, they usually attacked her and I was forced to dispose of them.

Sometimes I envied those I destroyed, sometimes I grieved for them. Every time I destroyed one I hated Maria a fraction more. This was the first newborn I had killed with no remorse. If that makes me a monster, I will gladly hold the title as long as I can spare Bella the pain of violation.

Maria was still watching me and though she tried to mute her emotions, they were still within my reach. I caught a strong wave of wariness, the closest to fear that Maria was capable of and I triumphed inside. Her acceptance and dismissal of the issue was not surprising, she didn't give two fucks about any newborn in particular.

Her parting words about possibly taking Alphonso's territory were startling. Alphonso had held that territory for a quarter of a century with no challengers. He was smart, driven and had practically helped write the book on the South's territory wars with newborns.

Apparently Maria had officially lost her damn mind. Either that or she was trying to stave off the seemingly inevitable coup from her sisters. My bet was on the latter, even if the idea of messing with Alphonso was fucking stupid. I hoped that if she followed through with her half-assed plan, our losses would be minimal. Wanting to ensure the best possibility for survival for each of my soldiers I split them up quickly so they could spar.

I used the opportunity to release some frustrations on a burly motherfucker that reminded me vaguely of a rhino. His hair even had cowlicks resembling horns. I grinned almost manically at the thought. While sparring with him I tried to correct his form, forcing him to quicken his pace and use his bulk as wisely as he could. He got a couple good shots in, and instead of it raising my ire I shot him a wave of pride. I still kicked his ass, but after my teeth announced my victory against his throat and I had released him, he shot me a half smile that I returned.

I glanced around, watching everyone's progress and sending out waves of focus and determination. Peter was across from me, also watching the newborns fight ruthlessly, waiting in the wings in case one got too carried away and tried to kill their opponent. I felt his emotions shift from the usual focus he radiated in situations like these to concern and curiosity. I followed his line of sight and felt the same for a split second before new emotions began to bubble and claw at my long empty stomach.

Bella had her pale arms wrapped around a tall, handsome, dark-haired newborn. He wasn't struggling much, if at all, in her hold and she didn't seem to be doing much aside from holding him to her chest with her eyes closed and plump raspberry red lips parted and nearly brushing the shell of his ear. His eyes were unfocused and half-lidded in a look that could be taken many different ways, depending on how dirty minded you were. Since my mind is fucking filthy, I was hit with just how fucking wrong I found the sight to be. Bella wrapped around another, meaning someone who wasn't me. What the fuck.

Before I could move in their direction-to do what? Rip the motherfucker away from her and wrap her around me? I honestly didn't know- her eyes snapped open and darted to Peter who was smirking like a fucking asshole and glancing at me with that knowing fucking look. She spared me an indecipherable look before bringing her teeth to the newborns throat and –_finally!_ - releasing him. He seemed to hesitate leaving her and I suppressed the growl that had sprang to life from those damn bubbling emotions in my dead stomach. He left her after he gave her a nod with soft eyes and an almost smile.

I clamped down on my emotions and tried to refocus on my soldiers, but in the back of my mind the confusion continued. Confusion to my reaction, to my emotions, to the snarling beast that had been born in the moment that my eyes had taken in the sight of Bella and that fucking newborn. It was all new to me and I didn't know if I liked the surge of new emotions. Sure, I liked the feelings of affection she threw out at me. I liked the warm feelings she inspired more than anything on this earth. But the emotions that she inspired at this moment? Not so fucking much.

"You gotta take the bad with the good, brother." If I hadn't been a fucking vampire I would have jumped at the sound of Peter's voice coming from my right. He was standing shoulder to shoulder with me, eyes trained on the action on front of us.

"What the fuck are you talking about?" I hissed quietly. He chuckled and I elbowed him in the ribs so hard I heard one crack. He grunted and mumbled something about his family not being able to take a fucking joke, simultaneously rubbing his nose and rib and I couldn't suppress the laugh that erupted. He looked at me again with happy eyes, despite his injury.

"See? That right there. Laughing? How many times have you laughed, really laughed since you've been a vampire?" Peter raised an odd point. Neither of us laughed too much, if ever. Maybe a chuckle or a scoff, but even those moments were so infrequent I could count on one hand how often they had occurred. Huh.

"What is your fucking point?" I replied impatiently, unwilling to let on he had struck a nerve. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the smug look gracing his features. Bastard.

"That's Izzy's doing. Plain and simple." Call me dense but Peter was the one who had caused me to laugh. I didn't catch the correlation. Peter sensed my confusion and elaborated.

"You and I both know this life is hell. Fuck, it would be hell even without the fighting; it's all fucking repetition and monotony. Newborns feel and radiate thirst and lust and anger and not much else. You know that shit better than I do. Now Izzy is here and she sends out calm, hope, protectiveness, affection and all those other warm and fuzzy feelings that have you wanting to say 'aww!'." Peter was grinning like a damn fool.

"So…" I prompted, sensing he wasn't done.

"So suck it up and deal with the jealousy that she inspires in you. Own it and use it. If your gonna be a territorial or possessive son of a bitch than be one, don't pussy foot around and try to ignore that shit and pretend it's not there. If you ignore it, you just might never own up to how you feel about her overall, trying to delude yourself into being the boring, albeit deadly, motherfucker you have been for the last 60 years." Peter had lost his grin and was radiating concern.

"Who the fuck are you calling boring?" I dodged his assessment. Jealousy? Plausible, but still foreign. But upon a quick assessment, I had been feeling flickers of it here and there when it came to Bella, especially when Patrick had tried to fuck with her.

"You, brother. Boring. As in, never feeling anything besides what the damn newborns throw at you. Never doing anything besides what that cunt tells you to do. It just may be time to you know, grow, or change or some shit." Peter took his life in his hands with that statement. I had killed fuckers for less than that insult.

"Vampires don't change, fucker." I let him live and replied gruffly.

"Are you sure about that, brother? You seem to have changed pretty damn quick after our Izzy joined our ragtag group of killers." He was as serious as I had ever seen him and I knew without a shadow of a doubt that he was right.

She _had_ changed me. Emotions I hadn't felt since I was a human were suddenly common and had an even stronger meaning than when I had felt them before I lost my pulse. I had been changing since I first laid eyes on the woman and in the back of my mind I acknowledged it. Fuck, if I thought about it, I had been subconsciously been referring to her as _mine_ in my head. And then there was the bath tub conversation and kiss. And the hard-on I had to will away with help from the icy water.

Peter was right, I needed to stop avoiding the changes, stop pretending nothing had changed when everything had. I needed to just admit to myself that I fucking wanted her, all of her.

Fuck it; I want her to be mine. There! It's acknowledged.

I guess the question was, what was I gonna do about it?

Peter moved, readying himself for a fight with a newborn that was slowly losing control.

"By the way, brother… She practically knocked him out with lethargy so she could read his mind for us. He likes us; you and I are like his gods. She wanted to make sure he would fight with us." That fucking smirk was firmly back on his lips. He leaped into a fight as graceful as a jungle cat. But not before throwing something over his shoulder that had my venom boiling.

"He also thinks she's _very_ easy on the eyes and he's also very _fond_ of her."

**A/N- I sincerely hoped you liked it. Reviews will get me going quicker than you would imagine. I'd love some feedback, good, bad, ugly, what the fuck ever. I just got back on the saddle for this fic and I need to make sure it's still cohesive. **

**Thanks for reading!**

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	12. Chapter 12

**A/N- Thanks for the reviews you wonderful readers you! I wasn't expecting such a response to my 'return' from obscurity but I'm glad to note that I was missed even a little bit. Now that I have some Rolling Stones in my ear, I'm inspired to write one out for ya. **

**This chapter is my take on what feeding in the cities would be like, so its informational and not really that exciting but it provides a background to the day to day life of the Vamps in the Southern Wars. **

**A big thanks to Lacym3! She gave me a rather big kick in the ass to update when she rec'd my story on Jasper's Darlins blog. **

**Anywho, I don't own Twilight or anything remotely as lucrative so boo for me. **

**Enjoy :)**

_**Bella**_

The sun had just dipped below the horizon in a brilliant blaze of pinks and golds. My sole way of keeping track of the days since I had awoken as a predator was watching that ball of gloriously bright heat die each night. I found it odd that only now, as a damn vampire, that I saw the miracle in the sunset. As a human it had been pretty and soothing, but now it was my hope that the next time it rose my world would be better.

I looked away from the horizon and watched as the sun's last rays danced on the skin of my comrades. We had just spent the last two days training non-stop, preparing for a battle that seemed impossible. Peter had found time during training to share a few important (and scary) details about the territory that Maria wanted to take over.

Alphonso's territory was the outskirts of Mexico City, the cream of the crop in terms of feeding territory. It was the most populated city, making for easy pickings with little suspicion. Alphonso had staked his claim over the area with an army of newborns a little over a quarter of a century ago and never lost his hold. Apparently, he replenished his stock of newborns regularly as well as keeping on older vampires for their experience. The shadow that crossed Peter's face as he informed of the possibility of us going against Alphonso told me all I needed to know. It seemed like a suicide mission of epic proportions.

I had no doubt that Maria had an inkling of her sister's plans, she was observant and paranoid by nature and apparently Lucy and Nettie had been disappearing too often for her tastes. Peter told me that he believed the only reason why Maria was even considering the move was to try and cover her ass with her sisters, to prevent their betrayal. Their greed astounded me, as did their seeming insanity.

"Fall in!" Jasper called us all to attention in his cool, deep commanding tone. I shivered.

"We will be going into Monterrey to feed. You will all follow Peter and will NOT separate or go ahead of him or the group. He will lead you to an abandoned granary where you will stay until it is your turn to feed. Peter and I will be taking small groups into the city and from there you will find your meal and return to the granary to finish your meal." He stopped speaking for a moment and I allowed myself to feel the amplified focus and calm he was sending out.

"If anyone leaves the granary to feed on their own, they will be punished severely. I'm talking loss of limbs or life, so don't dare step a foot out of that building without Peter or I. Do I make myself clear?" He growled out. There was an answering growl that Jasper seemed to accept as an affirmative.

Peter gave a swift nod to Jasper before he turned and began to run towards Monterrey. We followed his lead and soon the only sounds that were heard aside from feet falling lightly on the sandy desert floor was an occasional howl from a distant animal.

I pushed myself ahead of the pack of newborns and fell in next to Peter. He sent a grin my way but his eyes were clouded with worry. I decided to distract him as best I could from whatever was bothering him. I knew we could be overheard by the vampires that were trailing us so I decided to link our minds.

_Peter, what did you mean last week when you asked me if you were getting your mate?_ The question I had had no definitive answer for at the time had me curious and confused. _Did you mean a girlfriend or wife?_

He laughed at me, openly. What a jackass.

_That's one way to look at it. The human way, I suppose._ He mused. I huffed in response.

_Is there another way to look at it?_ I asked.

_Yes, Kitten, there is. A vampire mate is very serious business, far more serious than a girlfriend or wife. When vampires find their true mate, it's for eternity._ I could feel the waves of hope and wistfulness roll off of him and lap at my shield.

_True mate? As opposed to a fake mate? _I tried to joke, hoping to play off just how out of my depth I was. He wasn't fooled, and I could tell by the giant smirk on his lips. If there weren't newborns on our tail, I would have smacked him upside the head.

_A vampire can 'mate' with another for long periods of time and be content. They can separate whenever they choose and be perfectly fine._ He seemed to be musing on how to explain the concept of 'true mates' to me, so I let him pause for a moment.

_A 'true mate' is another matter entirely. The couple is drawn to each other immediately, the pull only growing stronger each passing day. They are soul mates, fated for eternity. If they are separated, or one dies, it is nearly impossible for the other to continue on._ The seriousness of the topic of 'true mates' was conveyed with Peter's emotions. I was in awe.

_Wow._ That was all I could muster in response. I could feel amusement for a moment before he returned to his grave emotions.

_Many vampires never allow themselves to find their 'true mate'. Vampires by nature loathe feeling vulnerable, and we don't change from the time we awaken. That is, unless we find our 'true mate' and then something inside of us shifts and the change that comes with it allows us to form the bond to our 'true mate'. _I watched Peter from the corner of my eye and the look of pure anticipation blew me away. He wanted to find his true mate, vulnerability be damned.

I wanted that for him, I wanted him to be happy more than I could ever convey. He had done so much for me since I had awoken. He had been a brother, protector and teacher; he was my family and one of the best friends I could hope to have. I never expected to have that again in my life, even before I had become a vampire. After my mother died I shut down emotionally. I kept anyone that had tried to get close to me at arms length, never getting in too deep. My father's absence and change in personality had made it even easier to close myself off from the world. Creating my alter ego had helped; I never had to be vulnerable as Isabella Swan. I could be Freya Jameson, a woman with no past and a future shaded in the night and in back alleys, free to tear down and circumvent silly legislation without ever being exposed.

My thoughts were interrupted by Peter, and I realized I hadn't severed the link and he had access to all of what I had been musing over.

_Kitten, you have no idea how much it means to me that you feel that way about me. I feel the same for you, and we both know our Major is on the same page, though I doubt he wants you as a sister._ He had the cockiest smirk on his face, as if he knew something and wasn't going to tell me.

_I'll help you find her. And I'll also help you keep her, 'cause you're gonna need all the help you can get, asshole!_ I smirked right back at his shocked face. I severed the link as I smelled and saw the city of Monterrey approaching. It was not yet midnight, so humans would be in relative abundance around the city streets.

Peter led us to a small building, ramshackle and smelling of slowly decaying grain, wood and stale earth. It was on the far end of an isolated part of the city, one that I had heard from the locals (during my human visits into the city) that used to be a thriving center of grain refining and commerce but was abandoned when they began to import their grain from the U.S. It was perfect in its isolation.

I noticed that Peter never slowed down, in fact he increased his speed, forcing the rest of us to follow his example and I instinctively knew that he was ensuring that we would be too fast for the human eye to see, making us as invisible as possible. I followed Peter as he squeezed through an opening in the side of the building where a couple of pieces of wood had been removed. He finally stopped when he reached the center of the large, empty room and I quickly followed suit and stood stock still, waiting for whatever came next.

I was apprehensive about the whole situation. I had fed a week ago but the thirst was consuming me. I could feel the emotions of the newborns slipping past my weakening shield, I could feel their thirst and excitement for this feeding trip and it made it hard to think of anything but finding a source of what my new body required. I could smell the blood of the humans in the area, and it smelled like pure ecstasy.

I shook my head, trying to dispel the tempting thoughts from my mind. I really didn't want to kill another innocent human. I wasn't naïve enough to think I would stumble across another crime in progress; I knew it was unlikely that I could play the hero and subsequently find a meal and feel little remorse. Nope, that was surely not happening tonight. So what then, was I supposed to do? My worrying was cut short as Jasper's voice cut across the room quietly. Even in a whisper, his words carried the weight and command of his barked orders.

"You five," He pointed to a small group of newborns that had fallen into line in front of him. "You will be following me. You will keep pace with me and will not even think of going ahead of me. You will follow the instructions I give you, when I give them to you and you will shut the fuck up and not make a sound. If you fuckin' growl, will rip your throat out. Exposure is not an option for any of us, so follow my lead and you will get your meal and live. Understood?" He waited until he received nods from each newborn, apparently they thought better of answering him in an affirmative growl. Smart vampires.

He pointed to another group of five, ordering them to follow Peter. Before he slipped through the hole in the wall, he growled out a final warning.

"If any of the rest of you can't wait your turn and leave before we get back, I will hunt you down and kill you on sight. Don't fuck with me." Not a single vampire dared to even twitch from the spot that he had left them in before he disappeared, five newborns looking almost comical in their effort to walk a human pace behind him.

Peter and his group followed a few minutes after Jasper had left, presumably trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. Before he disappeared through the hole he sent a wink at me, mouthing the words 'be good'. I almost laughed, appreciating the moment distraction from my circular thoughts and feelings about my upcoming feeding. To feed or not to feed, that was the question. I'm sure Shakespeare wouldn't have an answer either.

I couldn't tell you exactly how much time had passed before I heard the distinct sounds of vampire footsteps and frantic heart beats. Five frantic heart beats to be exact. Looks like the first group was back. I finally moved from my position in the middle of the room, walking backwards until my back aligned with the rotting wall.

One by one, Jasper's group stepped through the gap in the wall, each crushing a human in their arms. Young humans, old humans, Male, female, thin, stout, dark, sweet smelling, spicy smelling, tangy smelling…Mmm.

I wanted to turn away from the sight, I wanted to stop my ears against the sound of their blood pumping through their veins and into the mouths of my comrades, but I could do neither. I couldn't even bring myself to stop breathing in their scent; it was like the sweetest torture. Watching as the newborn ripped into their prey's neck was as disturbing as it was exciting. It was like watching two trains colliding at high speed, you know it's a tragedy but you can't look away from the fascinating horror of the explosion.

My new vampire beast was rejoicing as blood was spilt and lapped up, it was raring to get some nice sticky blood for itself. I tried to think of Johnny, and the overwhelming, soul crushing guilt I felt when his life had been forfeited to my need for his nectar of life. Thinking of Johnny dampened my desire only fractionally, definitely not enough to piece together enough resolve to avoid feeding.

I felt a wave of calm wash over me gently and I looked away from the feeding and into the dark eyes of Jasper. He looked as pained as I felt for a moment before his expression turned blank. His eyes weren't blank though; I could see the softness in them, aimed at me in what felt like a comforting gesture. I didn't dare create a link to his mind (no matter how much I wanted to), afraid to break his focus from commanding his troops. I took some comfort in his gaze, internally glad for the distraction and strength he was conveying with those deep, beautiful eyes.

I was grateful when the newborns finished their meals quickly, as sated as the constantly thirsty could be. Jasper waited for the last pull of blood to be swallowed before he ordered the five he had taken to bury the bodies at least 10 feet into the earth below us as quickly and quietly as possible. He pointed to another five newborns, a group that included Alexander I noted, and disappeared once again. I had little time to breathe easy before the sounds of Peter's approach met my ears.

The process was repeated and the thirst that I had been keeping at bay was clawing at my throat. I shifted my thoughts around in my head, trying to think of anything besides what was occurring around me but it seemed that even my thoughts were tinged with red. The color of the blood that would ease my flaming throat, that would sate my new vampire demon, that would make it all go away. I hadn't realized that I had closed my eyes until I felt a presence in front of me and they snapped open and aligned with Peter's concerned ones.

"You wanna come with me, Iz?" He asked me quietly. I thought for a moment before I nodded. As much as I Loved being around Jasper, it was hard to be near him but not be able to be close to him, to talk to him or to just be relaxed with him. We had an image to maintain and we both were too smart and bent on strategy to fuck it up by letting emotion control our behavior. I made sure that he never felt my longing or pain, but I had caught his several times since we had returned from my apartment and it took all my strength not to comfort him or jump on him, either one was a possible scenario, truth be told.

I found myself moving quietly behind Peter, still immersed in my thoughts of Jasper. Surprisingly, thinking of him took the edge off my thirst like nothing else had been able to, and I was grateful.

The four other newborns that were with us seemed to be moving disjointedly in their attempts to keep a human pace. But as awkward as they looked walking, their eyes were sharp, focused and very, very hungry.

The few humans we crossed seemed to shrink into themselves as they instinctively felt the danger we presented even if they couldn't make out the color of our eyes. I was holding my breath, allowing the others to sniff around for their meals. I tried to keep my eyes peeled and my senses tuned in, hoping against hope that I could catch myself a criminal.

Peter had us following him around a square mile of city blocks and alleys. He allowed us one by one to pick our prey, in various ways. One newborn found a huddled male on the floor of an alley, sleeping under a threadbare coat. The dark haired newborn kicked the human awake and swept him up in his arms before the human had time to scream. Another had simply stared as alluring as possible at a middle aged woman who seemed locked in a trance by his eyes. I wondered if he had a special power or if all vampires could seemingly dazzle humans in that way. She looked care worn and used by a hard life, but more than anything she looked oblivious to her fate.

The others chose their meals and I remained the only one aside from Peter who was empty handed. I could feel impatience and hunger spike within the group and I knew I had to make a selection soon. We had made a large circle in our wanderings and were nearing the part of the city that the granary was located. I began to panic and look around frantically for anything that could get me out of the situation and I was rewarded.

Our random path had led us to a familiar street, one I had frequented in my human days and I rejoiced for a moment. The street was dark but fairly clean, the buildings held offices and homes intermittently. My lawyer lived and worked in a well kept brown house in the middle of the block. I figured it was time to kill two birds with one stone; I would delay feeding for as long as possible and set the process of consolidating my funds up in one fell swoop.

_Peter, go on ahead of me. I need to do something really quick_. Peter twitched and I felt his unease and worry but I ignored it and slowed down.

"You! You are taking too long. Stay here and wait for me to return, I'll show you how to hunt so this never happens again!" Peter pointed and whispered harshly to me. I was almost confused at his reaction, until I realized his words were for show; he couldn't leave a newborn unattended for no reason so I shut my mouth with a click and stood stock still.

Submission did not come naturally to me, but I forced my face to take on a scared, sheepish look before looking down and letting my hair hide my face. I could feel the others apathy towards me and their excitement at finally being able to feed, and they quickly followed Peter to their destination.

I waited until they were out of sight before moving swiftly and quietly to the door of my Lawyers home. He was a nice old man; an American that had married a wealthy Mexican woman, hoping to create an international reputation in Law. He had offices in America, but kept his primary location and residence in Monterrey. I remembered what Peter and Jasper had told me about newborn strength versus human things so I ghosted my fingertips against the doorknob, exerting the lightest of touches. It popped open quickly and I was grateful at the lack of noise it made.

As I crossed the threshold I stretched my senses out and picked up two heartbeats and the strong scent of humans. Venom flooded my mouth as I registered a sweet, delectable scent. It smelled like oranges and honeysuckle. My vampire instincts begged to be let loose.

**A/N- So as I was writing this, the word count and pages began to climb and I decided to split it up so that I could stay a chapter ahead. **

**Basically, I have the next chapter ready to post. And boy, let me tell you…Next chapter is gonna be a doozy! Im writing some interesting occurrences with our lovely Jasper and Bella and Im all tingly about it. **

**I hope you liked the background on feeding in the city in this chapter. Review please!**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N- Here we are again. New chapter, same story. Read and enjoy, it will give me pleasure (in a non-perverted way…well… naw, non-pervy I assure you).**

**Sorry if you didn't like last chapter. Hopefully you like this one and put your damn pitchforks away. Love ya'll too!**

**Is a disclaimer necessary? No? Yes? Fuck it, anyway. **

**Previously**_**:**__ I waited until they were out of sight before moving swiftly and quietly to the door of my Lawyers home. He was a nice old man; an American that had married a wealthy Mexican woman, hoping to create an international reputation in Law. He had offices in America, but kept his primary location and residence in Monterrey. I remembered what Peter and Jasper had told me about newborn strength versus human things so I ghosted my fingertips against the doorknob, exerting the lightest of touches. It popped open quickly and I was grateful at the lack of noise it made._

_As I crossed the threshold I stretched my senses out and picked up two heartbeats and the strong scent of humans. Venom flooded my mouth as I registered a sweet, delectable scent. It smelled like oranges and honeysuckle. My vampire instincts begged to be let loose._

_**Bella**_

I locked my limbs and stopped breathing, swallowing the venom that only seemed to increase the pain in my throat. This had to be the _stupidest_ _fucking_ idea I had ever had. I chastised myself severely for making the mistake of coming here without having fed, regardless of my hatred of drinking blood from innocent humans. I couldn't afford to kill my lawyer or his family; I needed his help if Jasper, Peter and I were to make it out of the never ending vampire wars with the hope of an actual future. A future that required money.

I thought of Jasper's soft dark eyes, the way he looked at me before taking his group to feed and suddenly the scent wasn't as consuming. I unfroze slowly and made my way to Mr. Archer's private office. I planned on writing a letter, asking him to consolidate my accounts immediately.

The door to his office was open and I realized a heartbeat too fast to belong to someone who was asleep, lay inside. I contemplated fleeing, but quickly squashed the notion. I remembered my altered appearance and quickly willed my eyes to take on my mother's hazel color. In the light of his office, I was sure they would appear brown.

Mr. Archer looked up from the papers he had scattered along the surface of his cherry wood desk; his heartbeat skipped a beat or two before resuming at double time. I could hear his blood pumping swiftly in response to his hearts increase in rhythm and in an effort to quell my spike in desire for the man's blood, I forced calm from myself into the room. Its effect was instant, and I could hear his heart rate slow; it helped my thirst immensely when I could no longer smell his fear and hear the rush of blood moving in its delicate shell.

"Mr. Archer, how are you this…" I glanced at the clock on the mantle above the fireplace that was emitting a soft, warm glow from its low flames. "Morning." I finished quietly, sitting gently on a plush chair that was placed in front of his desk. I could feel his shock, apprehension and hesitant recognition. He was a brave old man, and I felt a rush of affection for him when he smiled somewhat warily and put on a calm façade.

"Ms. Swan?" He inquired slowly. I gave him a nod. His confusion spiked before dawning realization hit him. He was feeling horror, sadness and…pity. Mr. Archer pitied me, as if he knew what I was and what had surely happened.

"Oh, dear. I never put much stock in the superstitious ramblings of my in-laws but I suppose I had to be proven wrong one day." He shook his head as he muttered to himself, unaware that I could hear him. I remained quiet, waiting for him to make a move directed at me.

"Is there something I can do for you?" He asked; his eyes unusually kind. I swallowed the venom that had built up in my mouth at his scent, though it wasn't as mouth watering as the other scent in the house.

"I would like to consolidate all of my financial accounts, from all of my aliases as soon as possible. I know that that is not generally a service you offer, but I'm willing to pay you for your trouble." My voice was low and even to my ears, slightly hypnotic. His eyes glazed for a moment before nodding his acceptance.

"I would like the money to be placed in one account, under the name Isabella Jameson. I will need Identification and a passport to go with that, please." I paused, allowing him to take notes.

"Would it be possible for you to also sell three quarters of any stock that I own in a year's time? Any profit made can be added to my account. I'd also like you to take a percentage from the sale. How does 10 percent sound?" I asked him. His shock gave way to amusement.

"You are ever the generous lady, aren't you? Even with your… change." His chuckle and assessment had me glad that blood could not flow to my cheeks. I smiled slightly at him.

"Is there anything else, dear?" He asked in his grandfatherly tone.

"I may need new identities for two males and a possible female. Perhaps that could be arranged?" I liked to have everything covered. He jotted a few more notes before nodding.

"Names?"

"The males' first names should be Jasper and Peter with any surname you find appropriate. The female's first name can be whatever you would like but with Jameson as the surname, please."

"I see. I can arrange that all for you, and fairly quickly as well." I shot him a grateful smile. His blood still appealed to me, but his kindness kept me in check.

"I appreciate this, Mr. Archer, I truly do. I was planning on writing you a letter and leaving it for you. Im sorry for dropping by unannounced at this hour. I did not mean to intrude or frighten you. I hope you understand." We both ignored the fact that I broke in and I was now a creature that was shrouded in myth, but my apology was heartfelt nonetheless. He seemed to know what I was trying to say and I could feel his acceptance.

"No need to apologize, dear. I am an old man who doesn't sleep much these days, and I'm always up for a distraction. You see my youngest daughter is marrying in a month's time and I find myself uneasy." He shook his head sadly and I felt for him.

"Is he not a good match?" I couldn't help but ask. He smiled wanly before answering.

"Oh no, he seems to be a good man, or at least he seems to love my Amelia. Perhaps I am wary because he is a lawyer and would like to 'help' me run my offices in the States. I wonder if he is trying to put me out to pasture. I have no sons to inherit the firm, and I am obligated to take him on as my son-in-law. Its stands to reason he will be the head of my offices in the future." He seemed so sad.

"Im sorry, Mr. Archer." I didn't know how to respond.

"It's quite alright, dear. I just don't like being idle and dread the day that I am no longer needed in the firm that I built from the ground up." He explained. I understood how losing something that you worked hard for could feel like the end of the world so my sympathy increased tenfold.

"I understand, Mr. Archer. What is your future son-in-laws name?" If he had half the kind of heart that Mr. Archer had, I would be sure to give him business.

"Abraham Jenks. Fresh out of school and ready to take on the world." I was hit with his nostalgia, perhaps remembering his own early years practicing law.

"If he will practice law with your firm, then I will be sure to seek him out in the future. That is, if I am unable to see you first." I added with a flattering half smile. He chuckled at my inference.

"When the time comes for me to retire, I will be sure to tell him about you. He will need to know that he must treat you with utmost respect, if only to honor my memory and wishes. It will warm my heart to know that you will be taken care of in the future by my extended family." He paused, his eyes shining with amusement and mischief. "I've always enjoyed your visits and have enjoyed helping you with your philanthropy and other… endeavors."

I had always had a feeling that he knew of my bootlegging, and here was the proof. For one so old, he was one of the sharpest people I had ever met. I grinned at him, unable to suppress my amusement. My smile faded when I picked up Peter and Jasper's scent outside. It was time to go and face the music.

"Thank you so much for your time, Mr. Archer. I will return in a few weeks, and in all probability I will probably return at an indecent hour once again. I apologize ahead of time for that, it can't be helped." I sent him a sheepish smile.

"No bother, dear. As a matter of fact, as soon as I get everything in order I will put the documents in my top, right hand drawer. Just in case you happen to come on an evening when my after dinner brandy manages to knock me out." He sent me a cheeky wink.

I stood and offered my hand to him. With no hesitation he took it and we shook on it. I tried to exert as little pressure as possible, while still maintaining a firm handshake (who liked limp handshakes?) but I could sense his shock at my temperature and strength. I sent him an apologetic glance before I ducked out of the room too fast to be human. I knew that he would never tell a soul, for who would believe him? His reputation as a competent attorney would be ruined; and his heart was too large to share a secret that wasn't his own. I had faith in his goodness.

I tried to close the front door as gently as possible, and was rewarded with a dent the size of my thumb imbedded on the brass knob. I sighed in frustration and made my way quietly down the stairs towards Jasper and Peter. I opened myself to their emotions and was hit with affection, pride and worry.

Peter was grinning as he said, "You seem to be quite the business woman, Ms. Swan. So formal and elegant, aren't ya? Nice job on not eating the nice old coot!" I glared at him.

"Isabella," Jasper began, his tone had me feeling like a scolding was comin'. "I know you don't like taking orders and I know that you are stubborn as all get out, but what in the hell made you think that ditching Peter would be a good idea?" He cocked a brow in question, and I felt that it was oddly attractive given the mild tongue lashing I was receiving.

Not that I would mind him lashing me with his tongue. Dirty mental images flew around my mind in quick succession. Mmm… But he wasn't done telling me off yet. "If he hadn't had the brains to cover your ass and order you to stay behind, one of those newborns could have reported to Maria that you disobeyed my direct order and I let you live. 'Cause we all know I would never hurt you, and you had me really fuckin' worried, especially when Peter came through without you in tow…" He seemed unable to stop the words spewing from his mouth and his accent was shining through with the more he said.

I was irritated at the beginning of his rant (quickly followed by intrigued and lusty), but as the verbal assault continued his emotions and intent became clear. He had been worried about me, plain and simple, and he didn't know how to just fucking say that.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, looking into his eyes and willing him to feel my remorse for putting him in a bad spot. I wasn't sorry that I had taken care of business, but I shouldn't have been so impulsive, forgetting that Jasper had ordered us all to stay with the groups he assigned. It was true, if Peter hadn't 'ordered' me to stay, I would still have disappeared and it would not have been good for any of us.

"I know that it gets hard to stay rational, especially as a thirsty newborn, but you have to Bella." I could feel the waves of affection and caring that he sent me. His eyes were drawing me in, showing me that he cared and was not willing to lose me. Well, damn.

"I took care of everything that I needed to, and we should be set as far as identification and money. I didn't know what ya'll's last name is so I just told him to pick whatever…" I trailed off watching their expressions. I saw a twinkle in Peter's eye and pride coming from Jasper.

"Don't know my name either, but thanks for lookin' out for my possible future mate, Kitten." Peter winked at me.

"Whitlock." Jasper informed me simply. I liked that name more than I should, considering it was just a damn surname.

"I'm sorry, I should have asked before I did this, that way you could have your name. I didn't think it through." I rambled apologetically. Peter was amused and Jasper was smirking.

"It's okay, sugar. I can live with whatever your lawyer cooks up-this time anyway." His voice sent shivers from my spine to my lady parts faster than I knew was possible. When did his voice start dripping sex?

Peter turned his head to hide his chuckle but my focus was on the darkening of Jasper's eyes.

_**Jasper**_

I could smell her arousal and the delectable scent went straight from my nose, to my heart and then swiftly to my dick. I saw Isabella's beautiful hazel eyes dilate and the green and brown was soon chased away by the black. It was so fuckin' sexy. I could feel Peter's amusement as he chuckled beside us, but I could give two shits about his giggling ass when Bella's scent was still in my nostrils. I didn't need to feel her emotions to figure out her lust was mirroring my own.

Knowing that she wanted me like I had finally _acknowledged_ I wanted her was making it hard to control myself. Every instinct that I had inside me was screaming at me to take her, make her _mine_; for-fuckin'-ever.

Peter, the ever-present bucket of cold water, elbowed me in the ribs and I broke eye contact with my angel. I resisted the urge to knock the damn smirk from his face with my fist, instead I turned to him and hissed, "What?"

"Now, now Major, no need to be so huffy. We can't be leaving the newborns for too long, now can we? Let's hunt and get back before they lose control and forget your orders. You two can play later." He threw his head back and laughed. Before I could tackle him and rip his arms off to beat him with, Isabella walked up to him so that she was nose to nose with his grinning ass.

"I love you like my own flesh and blood, I would kill to protect you in an instant. With that said, I am going to have to rip off some of your appendages very soon; some that may not be able to reattach. You are lucky that we are too near humans; otherwise it would already be done. When you least expect it, I'll be there." Her tone was eerily calm. I felt Peter's apprehension and fear and I wanted to laugh, but figured that amplifying his own emotions would serve me better. It did.

As we began to walk in search of a meal I heard Peter try to plead with Isabella under his breath. It was fuckin' hilarious.

"Please, Izzy. I'm sorry, but we had to get going. You guys were a second away from-" I heard the sound of vampire flesh against vampire flesh and resisted the urge to turn around and eyeball the duo that was trailing me. It amused and turned me on when Isabella was like this. Mmm…

I tuned out Peter's pleas for Isabella to let it go and tried to focus on our surroundings so we could feed and return to the granary before all hell broke loose. I had planned my retribution on Peter a second after he inserted himself on Isabella's and my eye fucking session. I wasn't worried that he wouldn't get his in the end.

It was so sudden it literally knocked the wind out of me; pain on a scale that was rare for humans. I could hear Isabella's breath hitch behind me and I knew that her shield was weakened enough that she could feel it too. I inclined my head to the left, towards the source of the pain.

Peter hung back while Isabella drifted to my side and we ghosted towards the source of the tidal waves of pain and despair. I could make out a strong heartbeat, thumping fast and hard. The sound was so overwhelming to my thirsty mind that I almost missed the weak heartbeat of a second person inside the tiny shack we were approaching.

"There is a woman in there. She is watching her husband die of tuberculosis. She doesn't want to lose him, she can't stand the thought that he is leaving her behind." Isabella whispered to me, her eyes closed in concentration. I figured out she was reading the conscious mind that was inside.

I could hear the weak heartbeat slow even more and I knew that he would be dead in minutes. I gave Isabella a nod, one that she seemed to reluctantly return. She understood. This would be a mercy killing for the couple inside.

We entered the tiny one room 'house' silently, taking in the room in a glance. It was simple, well cared for and spotless. It also reeked of death. I caught Isabella's eye and sent her a wave of curiosity. Which one did she want?

She seemed to catch my meaning and she pointed delicately towards the dying man; he looked weak and frail despite his height and weight. I could hear his heart beat stutter in his chest and I sent her a wave of urgency. She nodded and took in a shaky breath before catching my eye and jerking her head towards the weeping woman, holding her husband's hand until his dying breath.

In almost perfect unison, we leapt at the couple and began to feed. I could feel the woman's emotions shift quickly from paralyzing fear, to comprehension and acceptance and finally peace. It wasn't a feeling I got often when feeding from a human and it eased some of my guilt. Maybe I was doing her a favor.

I could hear Isabella swallowing her own pulls of blood, taken from the man lying prostrate on his marital bed. I could not feel any whispers of emotions coming from her so I knew that her strength was restored. After the last thump of a heart was heard and the final pull of blood was swallowed we backed away from the corpses of our prey. The woman had never let go of her husband's hand, and the sight of them together in peace was strangely comforting. Our teeth marks and stray spatters of blood detracted only slightly from the odd beauty of the scene.

Isabella seemed to snap out of whatever post-feeding haze we were in and laced her fingers with mine, gently pulling me to the door. When we reached the threshold she suddenly let go and darted back into the house. I could hear the sounds of glass smashing to pieces and the smell of Kerosene grew strong. I heard the sudden sound of fire blazing and I knew that she was destroying the evidence of our presence here. When she flew out of the door she tumbled into me, and I had to use my vampire reflexes to catch her, but even then our balance was too far gone to catch.

We flew ten feet before my back hit the ground with a muffled smash, Isabella still in my arms. Pure fighting instinct reared up inside of me and I flipped us over and pressed her into the soft earth beneath us. I could feel the flames from the burning house warm my back, but the heat and electricity that flowed from every point of my body that was touching Isabella's was like an inferno in comparison. I could sense that Peter had gone to feed on his own, and I realized I finally had some precious time alone with my angel.

Her eyes were fixed on my own and I felt her emotions being opened to me and I knew she was feeling the heat and desire that I was. I shifted my weight to my elbows as I hovered over her, being sure that I wasn't crushing her beautiful form. My hand moved to stroke her cheek and her skin felt warm and soft against the pads of my fingers. I felt her hands caressing me on their journey from my waist to my neck.

I knew our time together was limited, but I had to show her how I felt. I sent her all that I had bottled up in relation to her. My longing, confusion, affection, protectiveness, desire, acceptance and finally that fuzzy, consuming, warming affection-like feeling that I had finally identified. Love. I sent her my love, holding nothing back.

I watched her expression to decipher her reaction, unaware that I had stopped breathing as I waited. I saw her expression change with each new emotion that she felt from me, and after I had settled on the dominant emotion of love I saw her eyes gloss with venom tears and shine with something I hoped was happiness.

She was still and I noticed I wasn't feeling her emotions; she had defaulted to her shield. That worried me for a moment and I steeled myself for her rejection, even as I was sure my eyes were begging for her to exchange her heart for my own. I was such a fuckin' pansy when it came to her. Suddenly the hands that had been resting on either side of my neck moved in a flash, one pressing into my shoulder blade and the other threading in my hair as she pulled my lips to hers.

I needed no more encouragement, and with her sign of acceptance I allowed her to pull my lips to her plump, warm raspberry red ones. I massaged her lips with my own for a while before I coaxed her lips open and slipped my tongue into her sweet tasting mouth. Her tongue found mine and when it did a jolt of pure energy shot through me. I began to feel her sending me the emotions that she instinctively protected and they matched the ones I had sent her before.

On the ground outside of the house that Isabella set ablaze after we had fed, she sent me a torrent of love so strong that it _almost_ caused me to pull away from my exploration of her mouth in surprise. I was surprised at the depth of her love, convinced that she would need time to feel like I did about her.

Maybe she had acknowledged her love long before I did, even though I knew it had been there, beneath the surface since her brown eyes had looked up at me in pain. Whatever the reason, the fact that she felt for me what I felt for her sent joy through me so fast that I couldn't help but send it out to our surroundings.

I heard her moan quietly into my mouth and teased her tongue with my own for a moment before pulling away and planting kisses all over her face, reveling in the softness of her skin against my sensitive mouth. My hands had moved without conscious thought and I could feel her soft hair in one and how her side curved in above her waist and out again near her breast with the other. Fucking perfect.

Her desire and love were spilling from her along with soft noises of pleasure and contentment and I couldn't help but bring my mouth to her ear to scrape my teeth over her lobe gently. I exhaled and traced my tongue around the shell, feeling her shudder beneath me. Her moan was louder in response to my ministrations and my inner animal rejoiced. I fuckin' made her moan like that. _Me_.

"I'm yours, darlin'" I whispered to her. It was so fuckin' true. I was hers; heart, body and soul. I was damaged in all of those things but whatever I was at the end of the day belonged to her. Some part of my mind thought about how Peter had muttered under his breath a few times about how Isabella would change things, make them better and heal us. Truer words had never been spoken, that's for damn sure. I knew that she would take the damaged parts of me and heal them, 'cause I was _hers_.

I felt her lips press down on the spot behind my own ear, sensitive as fuck under her touch. I let out a moan of my own and leaned in to capture her lips with my own again, something I was sure I would never get enough of. Her lips parted instantly under my own and again our tongues danced, her sweet taste was quickly becoming my addiction. I felt her begin to writhe beneath me as the lust we were sending each other grew. I was about to run my hands over her body when a throat cleared next to us.

Peter was one lucky motherfucker, because if he had interrupted us at any point before then he would have been roasting in the fire that Isabella had set. Lucky fuck, indeed.

I placed on last lingering kiss on my Isabella's sweet lips before pulling away and rolling to my feet, pulling her gently up with me. I laced my fingers with hers and felt her lean into my side. Her scent surrounded me and brought comfort and a renewed burst of joy with it. I saw Peter grinning with pure joy and I realized I had yet to reign in my own emotions; I was projecting all up and down the block. I couldn't bring myself to give a fuck.

We left the burning house behind us, walking at a fast human pace towards the granary. Peter drifted to Isabella's side and was whispering to her as quietly as he could. He probably figured I would give him shit for his continued pleading for mercy from my angel.

"I didn't interrupt you, Izzy honey. Now that you and the Major got to play, can you _not_ rip off my dick? I didn't interrupt!" Fuck yes, I was gonna give him shit for this. And if we played our cards right, I could hold this over his thick vampire skull for an eternity to come!

Life was good.

A smirk was on my lips as we approached the granary. Peter gave an exasperated huff when Bella hadn't acknowledged his begging and he was quick to run inside. I motioned for her to follow him through the gap in the wall but she turned on me and pinned me to the wall as gently and as quietly as possible. I guessed she didn't want the newborns inside to hear anything and get suspicious.

Her lips attacked mine hungrily and once again instinct had me reversing our positions. I pinned her to the wall and trailed kisses down her throat before stopping to suck on her collar bone. She shuddered and I knew I had landed on a strange sweet spot on her body. I would have to try that again later.

She pulled my head back up to her lips in one last, charged kiss before she pulled away to look at me.

Her hazel eyes re-emerged from their lust induced blackness and I felt her link our minds. She sent me a wave of seriousness followed by that incredible amount of love.

_I'm yours too, Jasper Whitlock. Yours and only yours._ She severed the link and gave me a chaste kiss, mumbling the word, "Mine," against my lips.

She slipped from my grip and flounced through the gap, leaving me grinning like a fool behind her. I took a moment to compose myself, ordering my hard-on away and trying to school my features into a less suspicious one. Before I completely let my grin fade I corrected my earlier thoughts.

Life wasn't good. It was fuckin' phenomenal at the moment.

I was determined to make that shit last. Lucky for me, I knew just how to do it.

**A/N- So there.**

**They aren't fully mated yet, I got a special something in mind for that when the time comes, but they are together and acknowledging that they are each others true mates. But what how can they be **_**fully**_** mated if they haven't '**_**mated' **_**yet, ya dig? **

**Yeah, I thought you might.**

**So tell me what you think. Sappy, ridiculous, nice, silly? What? I wanna know. Hit the review button darlins!**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N- Back again for the next installment. Thanks so much for reading! **

**Enjoy!**

**...  
**

_**Bella**_

We didn't waste time in the granary. As soon as Jasper came through the gap a minute or two behind me, we were on our way to some random, god-forsaken ridge outside of Mexico City. We had sped out of Monterrey in our typical running formation; Peter leading the group and Jasper bringing up the rear.

Instead of keeping pace with Peter like I usually did on our runs, I drifted towards the edge of the group closer to the back of the pack than the front. I knew I couldn't be by Jasper's side for too long, but I couldn't help the feeling I had to be near him. So I ran in a spot that had him in my excellent peripheral vision and I was comforted. I saw him eyeing me out of the corner of his eye as well, and I knew he was feeling the same way I was.

I couldn't wait for the time when we could just be free to do what we pleased; no worrying about Maria and her vengeance or when we had to kill another group of newborns to stake a claim on feeding grounds for greedy vampires. The selfish part of me wanted nothing more than to just end Maria and her twisted sisters' existence as soon as possible; not only to free my comrades of their dictator but also so that I could have Jasper fully, without anything in between us. But with a glance at Peter, I knew that I could never do it; something amazing was coming down the line for him and I would immolate myself before I robbed him of it.

Another big reason for waiting was the simple fact that, yes I could kill Maria myself, and I was sure that Jasper and Peter would help with her sisters, but what would the rest of the newborns do? If they followed their instincts, which I knew they would, they would panic at the sudden turn of events and try to kill the threat; probably thinking we would attack them next. We could probably take on most of the newborns, but why get cocky and chance it? What if we couldn't?

The conclusion was always the same; while we bided our time we would try and win over the newborns, ensuring they either helped us or stayed the fuck out of the way. I let out a quiet sigh as I ran, wishing I had the ability to speed time up and skip everything to get to the end; a hopefully good end. Somewhere in the back of my mind I knew that the journey was as important, if not more so, than the destination. Yeah, right. Patience had never been a virtue of mine.

Something was pushing on my shield directly so I opened it slightly and felt a wave of curiosity and concern hit me. I turned my head slightly and caught Jasper's concerned Ruby eyes with my own. I decided that since we were running and didn't have to interface with anyone I could link our minds. Mexico City was a few hours run from Monterrey, according to Peter, so we had time.

_Hey_. That was some brilliant opener.

_You doin' alright over there, sugar?_ His mental voice was just as damn sexy as his physical one.

I reigned in my lust before I replied but since he had access to my thoughts he knew what was going on, especially if that smirk of his was anything to go on.

_I'm as right as rain, Jazz. Nothin' to trouble your pretty little head over_. I teased.

He glared playfully at me before resuming his soldier mask. I sighed again, wishing again that we didn't have to hide, that we could just be free. He caught my thoughts and mentally agreed with me. I gave in and showed him exactly what I had been thinking earlier, including my momentary selfish desire.

_Darlin', you are anything but selfish, and truth be told I feel like you do. I'm gonna do whatever I can so this plan of yours and Peter's goes off without a hitch, but I know that if someone tried to take you away from me… Well, lets just say that any plans would be out the fuckin' window._ I could feel his determination and conviction, laced with a hint of guilt. He didn't want to risk our lives or Peter's happiness but he really would if it meant keeping me alive. I would too, and I sent him a wave of my understanding, acceptance and love.

_Let's just cross our fingers that all of that won't be necessary. I really want us all to be happy, even the rest of the newborns. They didn't ask for this shit either._ I still had concerns about what would happen if we succeeded. What would happen to the newborns? Would they leave and be vulnerable? Would they massacre cities?

_When everything is said and done, the best we can do is present them with their options and make sure they understand and respect human life enough to not go on a feeding frenzy. I'm sure it will be fine._ Jasper assured me, having caught the part of my thoughts weren't directed at him.

_Jasper?_ I began hesitantly. He urged me to continue. _I told you once that I was waiting for your life story. Will you tell me now?_

I could tell he was gathering himself, organizing thoughts and memories so I focused on making sure the newborns were not looking at either of us; thus allowing him privacy and giving him a chance to opt out and tell me later.

_Darlin', how about I show you? _

And boy, did he.

He was recalling as much as he could from his human life, and although it was hazy he seemed to remember quite a bit. I saw him as a child a few times, kind and loving with his parents and younger siblings (a sister and a brother). He had friends and was well liked. I saw him leaving his home at seventeen to join the Confederate army; his reasons were rooted in protecting his family, his state and their rights.

I saw him in the battles he fought in for the Confederacy, and the battles with the elements and with the terrain. I could practically feel the adoration he received form his unit mates, and it was no surprise when he showed me his quick rise to the position of Major. I began to get a little worked up when he showed me his last human memory; after evacuating the city of Galveston, Maria and her Sisters had appraised him and pounced.

His vampire memories seemed to run together in my mind, and they probably did in his mind as well. I saw his newborn year as a mass of bloody days of confusion and thirst. His instinct as a commander and fighter passed from his human life to his vampire life and he was quickly recognized as an asset by Maria.

An asset used to kill enemy newborns and the newborns in her own army when they had passed their 'prime'. His feelings of guilt, self-loathing and despair were hard to handle, I hated the thought of him in pain. He showed me Peter's arrival in his life and the impact that having a friend had made. I saw the wariness that Jasper had towards Peter at first, before slowly letting his guard down around him until he accepted him as his brother and friend. The weight of the world was on his shoulders and when Peter came along, the load lightened a bit. Jasper was forever loyal to him for that.

I felt a shift in his emotions and memories by the time he reached his memories of me. Everything that had happened since I was bitten by Maria was shown to me through his eyes, with his thoughts and feelings attached. He saw me as an angel, my tattoo adding to the image. He loved me for my spirit, my kindness, my acceptance of him and Peter, my intelligence, my beauty inside and out…his mental list of reasons was very long and I would have blushed if I could.

My love for him expanded somehow and I knew he felt it. He had a smile on his beautiful lips at my surge in emotion. Jasper Whitlock was many things; a soldier, a killer, a vampire, a man, a leader, a friend, an instructor… But everything he had done, everything that he was, everything made him the man that was running near me; dark blonde hair streaming behind him, ruby red eyes gazing at me with wary hopefulness.

Everything made him the man I loved with my entire being. I loved him; flaws, scars, past and all because he had a beautiful heart. A beautiful soul. No one who felt his guilt, remorse and despair at the cruelty of the vampire world as he knew it could be a bad person. He took no pleasure in killing, feeding or anything that Maria ordered him to do and that was the marker that told me his soul was wounded but still good.

I wanted to cry for him. I wanted to take away all of his pain. I wanted to skin Maria alive and make her watch as I picked apart her vampire body and burned each piece with slow precision. I knew that Jasper had read all that I had been thinking since he finished showing me his life through his memories, and a wave of serene calm and pure love were spilling from him onto me. I let it wash over me and the mental images of torturing Maria faded into images of Jasper and I locked in a _very_ intimate lover's embrace. I was aroused instantly, but the shock of the image had me glad blood couldn't pool beneath my cheeks.

_Thought that that might get your attention._ Jasper directed the thought to me with a cheeky wink. Two could play that game.

I sent him an image of my own; Jasper on his back, bare from the waist up. My lips trailing up and down his body, my hair grazing the spots that my lips missed. Me gazing up at him before popping the buttons of his jeans and lowering them away from his hard dick- and then I stopped imagining the scenario, sending him a smirk. I could hear his mental groan reverberate in my mind and I laughed inside at his disappointment.

_Don't groan at me, honey. I wouldn't want to get you all worked up…_ I made sure he saw me glance down at his obvious bulge. _And not do anything about it_.

_Wicked woman._ He shot back playfully before growing serious. _Sugar, are you okay with everything you saw?_

_I'm not okay with your pain, your self-hatred and I'm not okay with what Maria has done to you and has had you do… But I love you. Nothing you have done or will do will change that._ I let him feel my absolute sincerity. _I am sure before this mess is over, we are both gonna be doing things that are morally questionable, but its survival right now. _

He nodded almost imperceptibly. His relief was palpable. I really didn't understand what he had been worried about. I was abso-fuckin'-lutely serious when I had said he was _mine_ and I was his. I had never had another before him and no one could compare to him in my mind and heart so what had he been worried about? My musings were cut short by his reply to my rhetorical question.

_I was worried that you would realize that you are an angel and you deserve better._ He was serious. He must be delusional. I could hear his mental scoff.

_Yes, I said it. You are delusional. I am no angel and even if I was, I want you. Only you. Deal with it._ I threw him a pointed stare, my eyebrow raised in challenge.

_I surrender then, darlin'. You have me... Are you sure?_ He questioned again playfully. At my firm nod, he added. _Then you're stuck with me. For however long you'd like._ The grin that threatened to break out over my face would have been blinding.

We continued our mental conversation as we ran, and somewhere along the course of the run, I found myself next to him. I hadn't realized how close we had drifted until I felt the electric pulses that shot through me whenever our arms touched. It took me a moment after I realized we were too close to open myself up to feel the newborns emotions. Most were obviously not paying attention, but a few were curious and I mentally cursed.

Jasper was quick on the uptake, and the fact that we were still in each others mind didn't hurt. I sent him a wave of affection that her returned before I severed the link and sped up to keep pace with Peter. He was still annoyed that I hadn't given up my threat of dismemberment, but he sent me a warm smile nonetheless.

I knew we were drawing close to the rendezvous point and the worry that had been gnawing at me for the last few days increased ten-fold. I quickly decided to link my mind to Jasper and Peter's to share my concerns.

_I have the worst feeling about this. Everything will go to hell if we fight Alphonso_. I telepathed to my boys.

_I know what you mean, Iz. This isn't right._ Peter agreed. Jasper remained silent towards us but I could see possible scenarios flash through his mind quickly.

_Maria is stubborn, but she's not stupid or suicidal. If she really does decide to attack, and she sees that she's losing she will cut and run with no hesitation. Every single newborn is dispensable to her_. Jasper finally broke through his musings.

_You mean she would just leave everyone behind to die for her greed?_ I clarified.

_She's done it before_. Peter cut in. His disgust for Maria's cowardly actions was palpable.

_Do you think she will have us attack? When she left, she made it seem like it was only a strong possibility, not a certainty_. I questioned.

_She's worried about her sisters attacking her if she doesn't make a play for the city. She would sacrifice most anyone to keep her sisters with her. Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer has been her motto for decades._ Jasper explained.

_Most everyone?_ I wondered, an idea forming in my mind.

_Ooo. I see what you're getting at. You think that if Jasper refused to lead the mission she would back down? _Peter asked me.

_I saw inside her mind, she is wary of him to the point of fear. She also respects him and his opinion above all others, even her sisters. If he tried to persuade her, she would consider it._ I told them.

_So I'm the chosen negotiator?_ Jasper joked, but the gravity of the situation had our spirits flagging and it fell flat.

_You're the only negotiator. She'd kill anyone else if they questioned her_. Peter tossed in. His worry for the position we were putting Jasper in wasn't even close to my own. My guilt and anger at the whole situation was spiraling.

_It's okay, darlin'. I was gonna try and talk her down anyway. This has been a suicide mission from the start, and she's fuckin' nuts if she thinks I would follow her orders on this one_. Jasper tried to reassure me.

_You've never refused her orders before_. Peter pointed out. I could hear Jasper's growl from behind me, it was fierce and low, sending the newborns into a near panic for a moment.

_She's never fucked with __**this **__territory before either. She has never been this fuckin' stupid_. Jasper angrily replied. Peter sent an apology his way that Jasper shrugged off.

_Our best option is to try and talk her out of it, hopefully making it seem like it's her idea to wait on claiming the territory_. I surmised.

_That's gonna take a lot of manipulation. She isn't easily manipulated_. Peter chimed in.

_Well that's my gift. I can handle it._ Jasper assured us. I severed the link when Peter began to slow and lead us slightly to the east. After a few miles we came across Maria's scent, mixed with her sisters scents. We followed the trail until we spotted them speaking to each other in low hisses and growls.

Maria stood apart from Lucy and Nettie, facing them alone. Jasper ghosted to her side after we had all halted behind Maria. I suppressed my instinctive growl of angry jealousy at the sight and forced my expression into one of apathy. I refused to let what had happened between Jasper and I make me lose control and mess up our plans. Even if it was excruciatingly difficult.

I could see the tense lines of Jaspers shoulders and wondered if I had accidently projected my emotions or if he was just reacting to Maria's obviously angry demeanor. Maria seemed to relax slightly at Jasper's presence by her side and her army at her back. Lucy and Nettie seemed to shrink into themselves slightly at having to face down an entire newborn army. Whatever they had been arguing about was quickly forgotten and they seemed to gain an almost docile demeanor. I knew that Maria was smirking at them.

"Major," Maria purred and rubbed Jasper's shoulder with her delicate hand. "I'm so glad you have arrived." She turned to face the rest of us with a proud smile on her face, as if she was the one responsible for our training and victories. Aside from the venom that she thrust into most of our veins, she was nothing to us.

"Did you have any trouble in Monterrey, _quierido_?" Her hand was still rubbing my Jasper.

_Do not lose it. Do not rip her hand off. Do not move. Do not growl. Don't even fucking twitch. _ I mentally chanted to myself.

"No problems. This group is one of the best that I have ever worked with. They are obedient and follow directions very well for newborns." Jasper praised. I monitored the emotions of the group and came up with an overwhelming feeling of pride and happiness at being acknowledged in that way. That was a point in Jasper's favor, a point that he knew he was winning.

"Well now that you are all here, we can plan our next step. My sisters are anxious to enjoy a new assortment of flavors." Maria purred, looking up at Jasper from beneath her lashes. My new mantra was coming hard and fast in my mind, repeating itself and taunting me and driving me close to the edge.

My limbs were almost painfully locked in place. I didn't even allow myself to blink or breathe, the human tendencies that I had never given up when crossing over into this fucked up life. I knew that my body would betray me and fly at Maria if any movement occurred.

I knew that in our group of newborns, we were rarely completely still. We touched our throats, we blinked, growled, and shifted; still unused to being able to emulate a statue with no repercussions. Our humanity shone through in the odd twitches we let through.

My stillness stood out among the group and I knew that I was putting myself in danger. As much as I knew that I could easily draw attention to the fact that I was different, coherent and very, very angry; remaining still was the lesser of two evils. It was either shift around and run the likely risk of springing up in rage or get curious and observant glares from the Twisted Sisters.

Just as I was about to unfreeze-to do god only knows what- I spied some seemingly random movement. Jasper disappeared from my view and was replaced with a muscled back. With the image of Maria touching and staring seductively at _my_ mate no longer burning through my retinas, I took a breath. I quickly identified the muscular back's owner with the whiff I took of the air. Alexander.

I instinctively sent a wave of gratefulness to his back, glad for his hard bodied barrier between myself and the scene that lay on the other side of him. I noted that when the emotion reached him he relaxed a fraction. I didn't have to worry about him knowing of that ability of mine, he knew what I was capable of and he didn't let on that he knew anything out of the norm. I knew that he saw my struggle and placed himself in front of me for the purpose of protection. He feared for what could happen to me if I attacked Maria, which he believed I was milliseconds away from doing.

Gathering that from a quick scan of his mind left me feeling better about our position with the newborns. If one felt like this, perhaps more of them did. Hope began to blossom in my chest.

**A/N- Guess what?**

**I suck! **

**I finally found this chapter buried in my email and wanted to post it for ya'll, so there it is. I will be working on more today and hopefully it wont suck. I dont have a beta, so any mistakes are mine and you can call me out on it if you'd like.  
**

**Sorry for the massive delay in updating, had a full time, wacky hour-ed jobby job to work and then decided to quit and finally finish my senior year of college so im taking a bunch of senior classes in order to do that.**

**Basically it means I will try and update more, but I am getting ready to write a thesis and I have been reading pretty much anything history related that any recognizable historian ever wrote for class, and time is scarce. **

**I'd love to hear your thoughts on the chapter, and I know reviews get me excited to write, so ya, hit the button please :0)**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N- I was inspired by Deep and Devastating in this chapter, her Jasper in Under the Guise of Innocence gave me the desire to write and show you more of my Warlord's wicked side ;)**

_**Peter**_

"Why are we here, Maria?"

"You know why, _querido_. We will fight for the city." A smirk. "Why do you ask stupid questions?" A patronizing look at the Major had a muscle in his jaw twitching wildly. Uh-oh.

"The only thing that is _stupid_ 'round here is you, _Mistress_." His emphasis and sarcastic jibe at her self-styled title left no room for doubt on his feelings of her and the situation. Maria looked shocked a split second before she slapped our Major so hard his head turned.

A growl so sinister, so threatening it had the newborns falling to their knees in fear and submission sounded out into the night. I watched as my brother turned his head, ever so slowly, back to face Maria; the look on his face had me dropping to my knees with the rest of them.

There was nothing left of my Major, my brother. He was the animal inside, the violent, vengeful, bloodthirsty animal; and all of us knew it.

I wanted to see Izzy, make sure she wasn't rethinking her and the most alpha-motherfucker around these parts. Out of the corner of my eye I saw that every vampire in the vicinity apart from the Twisted Sisters had their heads down and to the side, exposing their jugular to the Alpha Warlord that was radiating rage so strong a few even whimpered. Lucy and Nettie had dropped to their knees and mimicked the rest of us, and Maria cowered away from him but didn't drop to the floor; too stupid and proud to follow her goddamn instincts.

"Do not forget yourself, _Mistress Maria_." Alpha Warlord hissed out, mocking her in all of his menace.

The slight to her authority had Maria's pride once again causing her to react without thought to the jeopardy she was putting herself in.

"You forget yourself, Major! I am your Master, I am-" Her words were cut off by Jasper's hand slowly, but surely crushing her windpipe. He snarled in her face and her knees finally buckled beneath her.

"You have never been MY Master." His words sent a shiver through us all. ".That."

I saw the infinitesimal tightening of his grip on her throat and I began to panic. It wasn't supposed to end like this, she wasn't supposed to die today! It would ruin everything, I was still missing something, I still needed to wait for something, even if I wasn't sure what it was, or who it was.

Fuck. Fuck. FUCK!

_**Calm down!**_ Bella's voice was firm, commanding and comforting all rolled in one. I heard a tell-tale echo and realized that She sent that to our Alpha as well. I tried to do as she told, slowly calming down, a process that sped up when Maria's throat was released.

"Mistress," Alpha Warlord's tone was mocking but still very threatening. "Your orders are to attack the city?"

Maria massaged her throat and half-glared, half- whimpered in fear before she answered.

"Yes." It seemed more of a question than anything else. Alpha Warlord smirked.

"You would have us all die then?"

Maria straightened up a bit and put on her proud face, the idiot that she was.

"I would have you all fight for what should belong to us!"

"If it is your wish, than by all means, Mistress, _lead _us. _**I **_will have no part in leading my troops into a suicide mission." He stepped back, a frighteningly calm expression on his face. Maria stared at him in shock. The subtle wording about the troops being _his_ was lost on her reeling mind.

She had relied on Jasper to lead any and all missions. She had become accustomed to barking the occasional order at 'her' army from a relatively safe distance while watching the actual massacring take place; that was when she bothered to show up at all.

She could fight, there was no doubt about that, but since Jasper had proved to be such a worthy General she had focused her efforts on creating a powerful army by changing promising humans. Her forte was now mind fucking the troops and allowing her greed to grow rampant.

"You will disobey me?" Maria's whisper was heard by all, and the uncertainty in her voice was plain as day.

"No. I will fight. But make no mistake, if you decide to attack Alphonso on this night, you will not be running away with your sisters. You will fight like you expect all of us to fight. To the death." A growl ripped from his throat at his proclamation and there was no doubt in anyone's mind that he would make sure that the Twisted sisters stayed on the battlefield, come hell or high water.

The rage rolling off of the Alpha Warlord was still palpable, but it was now mixed in with a dose of fear and menace. Smart mother fucker. Give the bitch a nudge in the right direction.

"Get up!" Maria suddenly turned around and snapped at her still kneeled and submissive sisters. A smirk grew on my face as I noticed their hesitant and fearful glances at Jasper before they followed her command.

She grabbed them both by the hair when it was obvious they were still scared shitless and hauled them to their feet, only to push them in front of her in a clear command to run a bit for a private conference.

Now, call me smart, but I still didn't want to run the risk of Alpha Warlord still hanging around so I waited a bit before rising. I consulted my strange little gift and when I got nothing, I still wasn't sure what the fuck to do. Alpha Warlord Jasper was one motherfucker I knew I never wanted to tangle with.

A movement from the corner of my eye had me worried with a quickness. Izzy rising slowly, face blank and hands at her sides. No growl sounded out into the deepening night so with a slowness that rivaled a human, I rose to stand, pretending for all the world that I wasn't worried that my brother was five steps away from viewing me as a threat and killing my pretty ass.

I felt like whistlin' a jaunty tune and stickin' my hands in my pockets to play nonchalant. So I did.

A giggle was muffled quickly, followed by a deep throated chuckle. Izzy and my brother took my asinine, possibly suicidal actions as a tension release and I thanked fuck that I was still wearing my head where I liked it, above my wonderfully broad shoulders.

Slowly the rest of the newborns began to rise, wary and confused, but aware that their instincts were no longer demanding their submissiveness in the face of the Alpha Warlord. Their Major was back. They broke ranks tentatively and milled around almost casually after a minute.

Whatever conference was being held by Maria and her dumb as nails sister's was taking longer than it should have and I could see Jasper gettin' antsy.

I decided to see if my strange little gift could give me some fuckin' insight. Scenarios flashed in my head, all felt wrong and inconclusive. I was so absorbed that I failed to spot my baby sister drift to my side until she placed her hand on my arm.

A sudden low growl had every newborn snapping to attention, but Jasper's eyes were trained on Izzy's hand on my –very nicely muscled, if I do say so myself- arm. It didn't take a fuckin' genius to figure out what my brother's problem was.

Green may have been the color of his eyes while he was a human- according to a pansy ass conversation we had once, I swear they don't happen often- but at the moment I could swear he was wearing that color as a vampire more and more often when Izzy was involved.

Izzy dropped her hand, only to cross her arms in annoyance. That didn't help much, as it only served to create more cleavage in her already ample chest area causing the lust around the newborns to spike. Fuck me, _I _even snuck a peek, what with her button-up being unbuttoned just right… And holy hell, that was my adopted sister.

I could feel the jealousy and anger, mixed with frustration as Jasper accidently lost control of his gift but it was quickly replaced with Izzy's brand of calm.

A single eyebrow rose on Izzy's impassive face as she stared at her mate. Then slowly a smirk emerged on her pretty face. I wanted to laugh, but I knew she wouldn't take kindly to me laughing at how whipped she already had my brother. After all he was her mate, and the instinct to defend a mate was not something to incite.

Plus, she was standing too close to me. I couldn't get away from her fists if I let loose my manly giggles at the expense of my big, brooding brother. Some other time, I reasoned to myself.

"Fall in!" Jasper cried out, having heard the sounds of Maria rejoining us.

By the time Maria, Lucy and Nettie were standing in front of us, we all had assumed our usual formations and looked ever the obedient army. Blank faces and postures that were just waiting for the word to fight.

Maria wore a scowl the size of Texas as she glared at Jasper and then at all of us. Whatever the conclusion was from their little gossip session had the cunt looking like she had been suckin' on a nasty ass pussy.

"We will be heading back to camp for the time being. More recruits are needed to accomplish our goal." With that she turned tail and ran, clearly skipping camp in favor of finding some grub to cool her temper and probably burning throat.

Bitch was pisssssed.

Lucy and Nettie gave each other a glance that did not go unnoticed by Jasper, Izzy or I, before they took off into the night.

This was almost anti-climatic. I kicked a pebble away from me as I shuffled my feet with my pent up energy.

Wait, what the fuck was I thinking?

We had avoided a suicide mission, put Maria in her place and got a free pass to relax for a few days. All good things in my book.

But _fuck_ if I wasn't raring to go. I needed a fight, or a fuck. A fuck…hmmm… the possibilities…

Without conscious thought I turned around and began running back to camp. The goofy grin and slight drool on my face from my fantasies would later be used as ammunition against me by Izzy.

I didn't mind the jokes at my expense.

Much.

Well, fuck, at least it was better than getting my dick ripped off.

**A/N- Thanks to the Fellowship of the Peen and givemesomevamp for rec'ing my fic. Much appreciated, for real : )**

**Anyway, This chapter may seem like filler and it kind of is but for the most part it is the catalyst for major events. Next chapter will be the much anticipated arrival of Peter's present, so stay tuned lovelies!**

**Love it or hate it? Review and let me know!**


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